Originally published on October 24, 2013

A Yemeni intelligence service officer was assassinated by gunmen in a drive-by shooting in the country's capital on Thursday (October 24).

It was reported that Colonel Abdulrahman Mohammed al-Shami was leaving his home in central Sanaa at noon when two unidentified gunmen approached him on a motorcycle. One of the gunmen reportedly opened fire on him before the two fled the scene. The colonel died immediately.

Local media reports said the colonel was a cousin of Tariq al-Shami, the chairman of the Yemeni news agency Saba.

No one has claimed responsibility for the attack. However, authorities have blamed al-Qaeda linked Islamists for similar shootings that have killed more than 80 officers in various parts of the country over the past two years.

Reuters reports, "Tackling lawlessness in Yemen, which lies near important oil shipment routes and borders the world's biggest oil exporter Saudi Arabia, is an international priority for the United States and other Western countries. It is home to an al Qaeda wing that has planned international bomb attacks.

"As well as battling an Islamist insurgency in the south, the Yemeni government faces a southern separatist movement and a revolt among some tribes in the impoverished north of the country."


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