Three individuals, including two militants believed to belong to the extremist group Al-Qaeda, were killed in an airstrike in central Yemen on Sunday, executed by a drone thought to be American, according to two government officials who spoke to AFP. An official from the internationally recognized government stated, "A drone, believed to be American, targeted a vehicle carrying a man likely affiliated with Al-Qaeda, along with his wife, injuring both." The official added that "three individuals, a civilian and two militants presumed to belong to Al-Qaeda, arrived in a vehicle to aid the injured, but their car was struck by a drone strike, resulting in their deaths."
Details of the strikes were confirmed by another government official in the border region between the provinces of Shabwa and Al-Bayda, where the incident occurred, noting that the civilian who was killed, who was with the militants, belonged to a local tribe. Al-Qaeda militants have been present in Yemen for over two decades, exploiting the chaos resulting from the war between the recognized government and Iran-backed Houthi militias to attempt to strengthen their positions in recent years, particularly in the south and central parts of the impoverished country.
Washington considers "Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula" to be the most dangerous branch of Al-Qaeda in the world and has often expressed concern about its growing influence, taking advantage of the disorder stemming from armed conflict, fearing attacks by Al-Qaeda on U.S. soil. The group has claimed responsibility for attacks in the United States and Europe, notably the assault on the French satirical weekly "Charlie Hebdo" in Paris in 2015, which left 12 dead, as well as a shooting that resulted in three deaths in 2019 at a U.S. military base in Florida.
However, the group's attacks have significantly decreased recently following intensive U.S. drone strikes, especially during former President Donald Trump's administration, and ground operations. In February 2020, Trump announced that the United States had "successfully eliminated Qasim al-Rimi, one of the founders and leaders of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula," who was succeeded by Khalid bin Umar al-Batrafi.
