6 wanted al-Qaida operatives captured in Yemen

Yemeni security forces on Tuesday captured six al-Qaida militants, including a commander of the group in the country's northeast province of Al-Jouf, the Yemeni state SABA news agency reported. "The security forces captured Tuesday six wanted al-Qaida terrorist elements, including Musaid Ahmed Mohamed al-Barbari who is the group's commander in Al-Jouf and the mastermind of a terrorist attack on Sanaa International Airport on Jan. 19, 2009," SABA cited an official statement as saying. "Large quantities of explosives were seized during the raid, as well as written schemas of targeting local and foreign embassy's interests in the capital Sanaa," it added. Militants of al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula are taking advantage of the ten months of sweeping protests against Yemeni outgoing President Ali Abdullah Saleh's rule to bolster their presence in the country's remote regions. With assistance from the international community, the Yemeni newly-formed coalition government has reportedly resumed combat against terrorist groups as it works to reseize control all over the country.