CAIRO — The U.S. embassy has issued an evacuation order for non-essential staffers after
warning of new Al Qaida attacks on Westerners in Yemen.
On Tuesday, the State Department ordered non-essential staff to leave
Yemen. The embassy said Americans in Yemen must make plans to leave the
country immediately.
The embassy raised the prospect of additional Al Qaida strikes after
mortar attacks on a Western compound in Sanaa on April 6. Three mortars
smashed into the
compound, but nobody was injured, Middle East Newsline reported.
"The Department of State has ordered the departure of non-emergency
embassy staff and family members from Yemen," the embassy said. "Embassy
employees are not authorized to travel outside of Sanaa and have been
advised to avoid hotels, restaurants, and tourist areas and to strictly
limit their exposure in public places until further notice."
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Al Qaida has claimed responsibility for the mortar strike at the Hadda
compound. This was the second such attack by Al Qaida on Westerners in less
than three weeks.
"The embassy advises all U.S. citizens to exercise caution in this area
of city, and will report any further information that may become available,"
the embassy said.
On March 19, Al Qaida fired mortars toward the U.S. embassy in Sanaa.
The mortars missed the embassy and struck a girls school, killing two.
Since then, Yemeni authorities have reported the arrest of a senior Al
Qaida fugitive. The detainee was identified as Ali Abdullah Gazi Al Raymi,
captured after a hunt of more than two years.
