ADEN: US warplanes pounded Al-Qaeda targets in Yemen for a second straight day Friday, killing eight militants, security and tribal sources said as Washington boosts its air war against the terrorists.
A defense official in Washington told AFP that American forces conducted “about 10” strikes in Yemen on Friday.
The attacks hit similar targets as on Thursday — weapons caches, fighters and military equipment, the official said.
Residents said US soldiers fought two separate gunbattles overnight with Al-Qaeda militants, supported by heavy aerial bombardment.
Troops descended on the Wadi Yashbum village in the southern Shabwah province and engaged suspected Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) militants for nearly half an hour, the residents said.
One of the targets in the raid, shortly after midnight, was the home of Saad Atef, an Al-Qaeda leader in the area. The assault included about 10 to 15 airstrikes, some of which hit civilian homes, and a number of civilians were among the wounded, residents said.
About three hours later, residents in the Jabal Mugan area of neighboring Abyan province reported airstrikes and gunbattles between suspected Al-Qaeda fighters and US soldiers that also lasted about half an hour.
Security officials in the area said eight militants were killed, and tribal sources said that women and children were wounded.
Terrorists retaliated with anti-aircraft fire, security officials and tribal sources said, adding that US helicopters also took part in the operation. One resident said it had been a “terrifying night.”
However, a US official denied reports that American forces had been engaged in ground combat or conducting raids.
“I know there have been reports of firefights, raids, there have not been any that US forces have been involved in — not since the one you know about,” Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, told a news briefing, adding that since Thursday there had been about 30 US strikes in total against the group.
A senior Yemeni official described the strikes as “open-ended” and said they raised questions about the objectives of such an operation.
8 more Al-Qaeda men killed by US in Yemen raids
8 more Al-Qaeda men killed by US in Yemen raids
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The art of war: fears for masterpieces on loan to Louvre Abu Dhabi
- UAE paid more than €1 billion to borrow priceless works, but experts in France want them back
PARIS: The Middle East war has raised fears for the safety of priceless masterpieces on loan from France to the Louvre Abu Dhabi, the museum’s only foreign branch.
The Abu Dhabi museum, which opened in 2017, has so far escaped damage from nearly 1,800 Iranian drone and missile strikes launched since the conflict erupted on Feb. 28.
However, concerns are mounting in France. “The works must be removed,” said Didier Selles, who helped broker the original agreement between France and the UAE.
French journal La Tribune de l’Art echoed that alarm. “The Louvre’s works in Abu Dhabi must be secured!” it said.
France’s culture ministry said French authorities were “in close and regular contact with the authorities of the UAE to ensure the protection of the works loaned by France.”
Under the agreement with the UAE, France agreed to provide expertise, lend works of art and organize exhibitions, in return for €1 billion, including €400 million for licensing the use of the Louvre name. The deal was extended in 2021 to 2047 for an additional €165 million.
Works on loan include paintings by Rembrandt and Chardin, Classical statues of Isis, Roman sarcophagi and Islamic masterpieces: such as the Pyxis of Al-Mughira.
A Louvre Abu Dhabi source said the museum was designed to protect collections from both security threats and natural disasters.
