Aden: Three people have been executed by militants in Yemen on Monday for having links with the United States, a military source said.
“Suspected Yemen-based Al Qaida operatives kidnapped three local residents and then executed them by firing a barrage of bullets on them in Qattan region of Hadramout province,” Xinhua quoted the military source as saying.
The three men were killed because they provided the whereabouts of the Islamist militants to the US, local media said.
“This was the final moment of those spies who helped the US unmanned aircraft in bombing and assassinating the commanders of the Islamic fighters in Yemen,” Ansar Al Sharia News reported citing Al Qaida-linked account on Twitter.
On March 3, the Al Qaida group killed a resident accused of aiding US drones, and crucified him on a public goalpost in a soccer field in Hadramout province.
US has recently escalated its drone strikes on suspected Al Qaida targets and pledged to continue to support the special counter terrorism efforts of the Yemeni government, aiming to uproot the Al Qaida in the impoverished country.
However, critics said the drone strikes often violate the international law and cause heavy civilian casualties.
Al Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, also known locally as Ansar Al Sharia, which emerged in January 2009, is considered one of the greatest threats to the Yemeni government and neighbouring Saudi Arabia.
