CAIRO: Friends of the spokesman for Yemen’s Bahai religious minority say he has been detained by Houthi militias who control the country’s north.
Two friends of Abdullah Yahia Al-Ayolofi said Friday that unidentified men snatched Al-Ayolofi from a market in a district called Al-Jarraf in Sanaa on Thursday. His whereabouts remain unknown, they said.
A security official tells The Associated Press that Houthi militiamen seized Al-Ayolofi earlier in the week.
Al-Ayolofi, a convert to Bahaism, has been outspoken about Houthi abuses against Bahai followers.
All spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution.
The Houthis’ leader has targeted Bahais in public speeches describing them as “satanic” and several Bahais have been detained, tortured and held incommunicado, according to the community’s United Nations representative.
Top Yemen Bahai figure disappears amid Houthi crackdown
Top Yemen Bahai figure disappears amid Houthi crackdown
Syrian government foils Daesh plot to attack churches and New Year celebrations
- Bomber kills soldier in Aleppo, detonates explosives injuring 2 others
ALEPPO, DAMASCUS: The Syrian Interior Ministry announced on Thursday that it had thwarted a Daesh plot to carry out suicide attacks targeting New Year celebrations and churches, particularly in Aleppo.
The ministry said in a statement that, as part of ongoing counterterrorism efforts and careful monitoring of Daesh cells in cooperation with partner agencies, it had received intelligence indicating plans for suicide attacks targeting New Year celebrations in several provinces, particularly Aleppo, with a focus on churches and civilian gathering areas.
The ministry added that it took preemptive measures, including reinforcing security around churches, deploying mobile and fixed patrols, and setting up checkpoints across the city.
During operations at a checkpoint in Aleppo’s Bab Al-Faraj district, security forces intercepted a suspected Daesh member who opened fire. One internal security soldier was killed, and the attacker detonated explosives, injuring two others.
Daesh recently increased its attacks in Syria, and was blamed for an attack last month in Palmyra that killed three Americans.
On Dec. 13, two US soldiers and an American civilian were killed in an attack Washington blamed on a lone Daesh gunman in Palmyra.
In retaliation, American forces struck scores of Daesh targets in Syria.
Syrian authorities have also carried out several operations against Daesh since then, saying on Dec. 25 they had killed a senior leader of the group.
