In a move seen by many as an attempted retaliation against the announced execution of a US journalist by al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), the US has launched a drone strike against the southern Yemeni province of Shabwa.
Nine people were killed in the drone strike, and while none of them were conclusively named, Yemen referred to them as “alleged al-Qaeda militants.”
The journalist, Luke Somers, was the targeted of a failed US rescue operation last week, and was reported to have been executed by AQAP, along with a South African aid worker.
The US has been launching growing numbers of drone strikes against Yemen, killing a number of people, but as with the drone war everywhere else, it is extremely rare for anyone to be named.
