High-ranking Saudi officer kidnapped in Marib

MARIB, Jan. 05 (YPA) – Unidentified gunmen kidnapped on Tuesday a Saudi officer holding a high rank and took him to an unknown area in Marib province, east of Yemen, sources told Yemen Press Agency.

The kidnapping of the Saudi officer came before a meeting with Al Qaeda operatives in Wadi Abida area, after he was lured by officers working in the Saudi-led coalition’s joint operations room, the sources explained.

According to the sources, the Chief of Staff of the Ministry of Defense in the “Hadi Government” loyal to the UAE, Sagheer bin Aziz, held an emergency meeting with a number of military commanders on Monday to discuss the kidnapping of a Saudi officer in the areas under the control of the coalition.

Aziz accused some of the Marib tribes, which the sources did not mention their names, of being behind the kidnapping of the Saudi officer.

Saudi military leaders threatened to launch armed campaigns against the tribes accused of kidnapping the Saudi officer, if his whereabouts were not revealed within 48 hours.

YPA