Yemeni tribesmen shoot down army warplane
YEMEN: Tribesmen fighting Yemeni troops loyal to under-fire President
Ali Abdullah Saleh shot down Wednesday an army warplane north of Sanaa,
witnesses and tribal sources said.A military spokesman said a Sukhoi
SU-22 "fell during a regular mission" and held opposition leaders
"responsible for the incident," Saba state news agency. The jetfighter
was downed by anti-aircraft guns near Arhab, 40 kilometres (26 miles)
north of the capital, where armed tribesmen have been locked in combat
with the elite Republican Guard, led by Saleh's son Ahmed, witnesses
said.
"We saw the downed plane in flames on the ground," one witness said.
The plane crashed in the village of Beit Azar, and the pilot who had
ejected was captured by tribesmen, tribal sources said.
Heavy air strikes have targeted the tribal area of Arhab after a
general and six other soldiers were killed Sunday in clashes between
tribesmen and the Republican Guard.
General Abdullah al-Kulaibi, head of the 63rd brigade of the elite
Republican Guard unit, was killed in the attack by tribesman opposed to
Saleh's rule in the strategic town of Nihm, the defence ministry said.
Four of the attackers were killed during the assault on the military
base, about 60 kilometres (40 miles) from the Yemeni capital, it said.
Tribal sources claimed on Monday that 33 troops were captured in the
confrontation. Meanwhile, three more gunmen were killed in overnight
clashes with the guard, tribal sources said. Nihm is one of several
villages and towns that collectively make up the strategic northern
gateway into Sanaa and is site of at least five Republican Guard bases.
The elite unit has so far prevented dissident General Ali Mohsen
al-Ahmar, who now controls part of the capital, from calling in
reinforcements from Yemen's northern provinces where parts of his
division are deployed. AFP
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