Security Belt Forces in southern Yemen on Sunday said they captured an Al Qaeda-linked cell responsible for a dozen recent attacks against troops in Abyan province.
Last week a bomb attack by militants linked with Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, or Aqap, hit a lorry carrying soldiers in Zinjubar city, in the southern Yemen province.
Seven soldiers of the SBF, who are fighting for the Southern Transitional Council, were killed and 25 wounded by a blast from a booby-trapped motorbike that was blown up remotely.
"Following the terrorist blast which targeted our soldiers on Friday, a battalion from our forces succeeded in identifying the head of the Aqap-linked cell that orchestrated and carried out Friday's attack," Abyan SBF spokesman Capt Salah Al Yousifi told The National on Sunday.
"The head of the terrorist cell was captured in Zinjubar city on Sunday morning along with another member of the cell."
Capt Al Yousifi said both militants admitted their responsibility for Friday's terrorist attack.
"The interrogation with the head of the cell led us to capture the other 13 members engaged in Friday's attack," he said.
Capt Al Yousifi said many of them admitted responsibility for a dozen attacks on soldiers in Abyan.
Aqap claimed responsibility for recent attacks, mainly in the provinces of Shabwa and Abyan.
On March 18, eight soldiers and four civilians were killed when Aqap militants raided a checkpoint operated by the SBF in the Ahwar district of Abyan province.
On April 6, Aqap claimed responsibility for a rocket attack on a military base in the Balhaf area of Shabwa. It is used by Arab Coalition forces supporting the government.
Foreign security analysts expect that elements of Al Qaeda in Yemen have blended with mainstream extremists, because not all of the recent attacks in southern Yemen were claimed by Aqap.
"Abyan province is a traditional Al Qaeda stronghold and the recent spate of attacks against Security Belt forces there bear the hallmarks of Al Qaeda operations," Dr Elisabeth Kendall, Yemen expert at the University of Oxford, told The National.
"But Al Qaeda has formally claimed only a couple of them on its official channels.
"This suggests that elements of Al Qaeda have blended with more mainstream militias who are hostile to those forces loyal to the STC.
"In Abyan, there is also an unusually long time lag between an operation occurring and Al Qaeda claiming it. This implies that Al Qaeda may be following, rather than leading."
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Financing stage: Two seed rounds – the first sourced from angel investors and the founders' personal savings
Second round raised Dh720,000 from silent investors in June this year
The biog
Hobbies: Writing and running
Favourite sport: beach volleyball
Favourite holiday destinations: Turkey and Puerto Rico
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RESULTS
Bantamweight: Victor Nunes (BRA) beat Azizbek Satibaldiev (KYG). Round 1 KO
Featherweight: Izzeddin Farhan (JOR) beat Ozodbek Azimov (UZB). Round 1 rear naked choke
Middleweight: Zaakir Badat (RSA) beat Ercin Sirin (TUR). Round 1 triangle choke
Featherweight: Ali Alqaisi (JOR) beat Furkatbek Yokubov (UZB). Round 1 TKO
Featherweight: Abu Muslim Alikhanov (RUS) beat Atabek Abdimitalipov (KYG). Unanimous decision
Catchweight 74kg: Mirafzal Akhtamov (UZB) beat Marcos Costa (BRA). Split decision
Welterweight: Andre Fialho (POR) beat Sang Hoon-yu (KOR). Round 1 TKO
Lightweight: John Mitchell (IRE) beat Arbi Emiev (RUS). Round 2 RSC (deep cuts)
Middleweight: Gianni Melillo (ITA) beat Mohammed Karaki (LEB)
Welterweight: Handesson Ferreira (BRA) beat Amiran Gogoladze (GEO). Unanimous decision
Flyweight (Female): Carolina Jimenez (VEN) beat Lucrezia Ria (ITA), Round 1 rear naked choke
Welterweight: Daniel Skibinski (POL) beat Acoidan Duque (ESP). Round 3 TKO
Lightweight: Martun Mezhlumyan (ARM) beat Attila Korkmaz (TUR). Unanimous decision
Bantamweight: Ray Borg (USA) beat Jesse Arnett (CAN). Unanimous decision
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Starring: Colin Farrell, Cristin Milioti, Rhenzy Feliz
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The five stages of early child’s play
From Dubai-based clinical psychologist Daniella Salazar:
1. Solitary Play: This is where Infants and toddlers start to play on their own without seeming to notice the people around them. This is the beginning of play.
2. Onlooker play: This occurs where the toddler enjoys watching other people play. There doesn’t necessarily need to be any effort to begin play. They are learning how to imitate behaviours from others. This type of play may also appear in children who are more shy and introverted.
3. Parallel Play: This generally starts when children begin playing side-by-side without any interaction. Even though they aren’t physically interacting they are paying attention to each other. This is the beginning of the desire to be with other children.
4. Associative Play: At around age four or five, children become more interested in each other than in toys and begin to interact more. In this stage children start asking questions and talking about the different activities they are engaging in. They realise they have similar goals in play such as building a tower or playing with cars.
5. Social Play: In this stage children are starting to socialise more. They begin to share ideas and follow certain rules in a game. They slowly learn the definition of teamwork. They get to engage in basic social skills and interests begin to lead social interactions.
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