Germany To Pull Out Aid Workers From Yemen After Lethal Attack

Berlin, Dec 7, IRNA -- The German government has called on all German aid workers to leave Yemen as soon as possible in the aftermath of a deadly attack on the Yemeni defense ministry which killed also two Germans. Speaking at a routine weekly press briefing, German foreign ministry spokesman Martin Schaefer said his country has declared a heightened security alert for Yemen, meaning all employees of Germany aid organizations had to leave the Arab country as quickly as possible for safety reasons. German embassy staff has also been downsized to a bare minimum, according to Schaefer. Al-Qaedas local branch in Yemen, AQAP claimed reportedly responsibility Friday for an attack on the Defense Ministry in Sanaa that killed 52 people and injured some 180. Thursdays assault started with a car bombing at a military hospital in the complex in the Bab al-Yemen area, followed by shootings. Yemeni military bases, as well as oil and gas pipelines and other facilities, have time and again come under attack throughout the last year. AQAP is seen as one of the most active and dangerous branches of the international terrorist network. It has exploited the weakness of the Yemeni government and its limited control over remote tribal areas to maintain a considerable presence in the Arabian Peninsula country./end