US Airstrike Targets Al-Qaeda Gathering in Shabwa
A US airstrike on Wednesday targeted a gathering of Al-Qaeda fighters in Yemen’s oil-rich Shabwa province, killing several members of the group.
A local source said that the surprise strike hit a concentration of militants in a valley in the town of Khoura, located in the Markha al-Sufla district west of the province.
According to the source, the operation killed two senior figures, Khamis bin Arafaj al-Dahmi and Saqr al-Humaikani, along with others whose identities the group has yet to disclose.
Meanwhile, local sources reported that a soldier from the Southern Forces was killed and another wounded by an Al-Qaeda sniper in Moudiya district, east of Abyan province. The sniper targeted forces stationed in the Awmran Valley.
This escalation comes as Al-Qaeda has stepped up its attacks during the first half of 2025, carrying out more than thirty operations in Shabwa and Abyan. These included the use of drones, light weapons, improvised explosive devices, and sniper rifles obtained through smuggling networks intertwined with Houthi militias.
Despite this surge in activity, the group has suffered a series of heavy blows in recent months, both from targeted US airstrikes and from security operations conducted by Yemeni forces with regional and international support. These efforts aim to sever the group’s supply lines, cut off its sources of funding, and dismantle the local environments that the Houthis are seeking to exploit.
