Unknown gunmen assassinate imam of mosque in Aden

ADEN, April 25 (YPA) – The phenomenon of assassinating imam of mosques has returned to the southern port city of  Aden, amid growing tensions between the UAE-backed Southern  Transitional Council (STC) and the Saudi-backed Islah Party recently.

Unknown gunmen on Sunday assassinated an imam of a mosque in southern port city of Aden, local sources reported on Friday.

According to the sources, the Imam of the Sunni mosque Rami Ahmed Fadl, in the Area of Bir Ahmed, was killed by car-ramming attack

Eyewitnesses reported that a group of gunmen believed to belong to the STC deliberately rammed over Rami Fadl, killing him instantly.

The military pickup vehicle left the crime scene immediately , one of the eyewitness said

Human rights reports have reported that 28 imams and preachers were killed in the city from mid-2016 to August 2018, as well as kidnappings and arrests of imams and preachers in and around Aden.

Although all the fingers point to the involvement of the “STC” in the assassinations of clerics in Aden, human rights activists suggest that al-Islah may also be involved in some of these crimes.

They added that the climate of insecurity and impunity in the occupied areas provided the appropriate atmosphere, to kill opponents, without fear of sanctions, which may affect the perpetrators of assassinations in the occupied areas of Yemen.

Aden city and other southern provinces, under the control of the UAE and Saudi occupation forces, have been witnessing chaos amid conflict between UAE and Saudi Arabia over control of the Yemeni lands, islands and ports.

E.M