Yemen, local leader of al Qaeda killed in an army raid
The operation took place last night in the province of Shabwa, 600 km east of the capital Sanaa. Yesterday, the military arrested four terrorists and two soldiers were killed in ambush by the Fundamentalists. Leading Saudi cleric issues a fatwa against al Qaeda and terrorism.

Sanaa (AsiaNews / Agencies) - A leader of al Qaeda in the province of Shabwa, in eastern Yemen, was killed in an operation by security forces during the night between 12 and 13 January. Official sources of the provincial government have announced that the suspected terrorist died in the siege at the hideout where he had fled.  

Ali Hassan al-Ahmadi, the governor of the province of Shabwa, 600 km east of the capital Sanaa, confirms that "Abdullah Mehdi was the provincial leader of al Qaeda and was killed by security forces who surrounded the house in Hout where he had hidden”.  

Yesterday the army operation in the Yemeni province led to the arrest of four terrorists affiliated with al Qaeda. Two of the suspects were wounded during a firefight. The Yemeni official news agency adds that two government soldiers were killed. The soldiers were killed in ambush by militants.  

Meanwhile, government sources in Riyadh report that the army has regained control of a village on the border with Yemen, occupied by Shiite rebels since November. Speaking to state television, Prince Khaled bin Sultan, vice-minister of defence, added that four soldiers and "hundreds" of rebels were killed in clashes in Saudi Arabia.  

Also in Saudi Arabia a religious leader has issued a fatwa against al Qaeda and terrorism. The Shiekh Abdul Mohsen al-Obeikan, a leading figure in the country and adviser to King Abdullah, stressed that "belonging to the so-called terrorist network of al Qaeda is haram" (forbidden according to the precepts of Islam, ed).