Sana’a: Helicopter-born commandoes, believed to be Americans, launched a raid in southern Yemen at dawn on Sunday that killed several people, including three Al Qaida suspects, residents told Reuters.
The gunbattle in the rural Yakla district of Al Bayda province killed a senior leader in Yemen’s Al Qaida branch, Abdul Raoof Al Dhuhab, along with his two brothers.
“The operation began at dawn when a drone bombed the home of Al Dhahab and then helicopters flew up and unloaded paratroopers at his house and killed everyone inside,” one resident said, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
“Next, the gunmen opened fire at the US soldiers who left the area, and the helicopters bombed the gunmen and a number of homes and led to a large number of casualties.” If confirmed, it would be the first American military raid in the country since it descended into civil war nearly two years ago and the first such operation during the Trump administration.
US special forces attempted to rescue an American and a South African hostage held by Al Qaida in another part of the country in December 2014, but the captives were killed in the subsequent firefight.
The United States conducted dozens of drone strikes throughout Barack Obama’s presidency to combat Al Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, regarded as one of the global militant group’s most dangerous branches.
