A Pro-government tribal militia based in the southern province of Abyan confirmed on Monday it managed to crack-down on one al-Qaeda cell in the region.
A tribal leader told the press on Sunday his men had sussed out and destroyed an important terror cell near the city of Jaar. Jaar was invaded by al-Qaeda militants back in 2011 when it remained under the group's control for months. It took a large scale military operation to outroot Islamist militants in the province.
The Sheikh explained his men had been on the hunt for quite some time, knowing the terror cell was planning to run operation from its hideouts which would destabilize the province.
With so much ground to cover and a limited men power, the Defense Ministry has been relying heavily on local tribes to maintain order and keep the threat that is al-Qaeda at bay.
“Our tribal fighters stormed an al-Qaeda-held site in Jaar town and seized 10 terrorists along with three improvised explosive devices,” Xinhua agency quoted a tribal source as saying.
The Defense and Interior Ministries have been both on the look-out for any sign of unrest or renewed terror activities in Yemen as officials are putting the final details to Yemen crucial National Dialogue Conference (March 18).
In the capital, Sana'a, residents already reported unprecedented numbers of checkpoints and security deployment across the city. All weapons and firearms have been officially band, even for those in possessions of permits.