SANAA: A Yemeni court of appeals yesterday upheld the death sentence against a rebel fighter and jailed 12 others up to 10 years after they were convicted of forming an armed group and plotting attacks in support of rebels fighting armed forces in the restive north of the country.
The court confirmed the initial death sentence against Jaafar Al-Merhebi, 25, who was convicted of killing two police officers when they raided his house in the capital Sanaa in 2007.
Presiding judge Muhammad Said Al-Hakimi delivered the verdict in a session attended by reporters. The court also upheld the 10-year prison terms for four men and eight-year terms for two others. Five defendants had their six-year jail sentences confirmed, while one defendant had his five-year sentence reduced to three years.
After the verdict was pronounced, Al-Merhebi shouted “death to America, death to Israel, and victory to Islam.”
The slogan is the trademark of the rebel Believing Youth group, whose armed members fought government forces in the northern province of Saada for more than four years.
Among those convicted was Abdul-Kareem Al-Khaiwani, former editor of the Shura opposition weekly, who received a six-year jail sentence. He was convicted of disseminating pro-rebel propaganda to local and foreign media.
Al-Khaiwani served eight months of his term before President Ali Abdullah Saleh pardoned him. The case against Al-Khaiwani was later dropped.
When the trial began in July 2007, prosecutors said the defendants had been involved in a conspiracy to blow up vital government and military buildings in Sanaa, and prepared remote-controlled explosive devices to carry out the attacks. They also said the suspects had planned to poison the water reservoirs of police and military posts.
Sporadic but fierce clashes between the Shiite rebels and the army have left hundreds of soldiers and insurgents dead since the fighting erupted after rebel leader Hussein Badruddin Al-Houthi first established the group in mid-2004. Al-Houthi was killed by the army in September 2004.
Last July, Saleh announced the end of the conflicts in Saada, a remote mountainous region 230 kilometers north of Sanaa.
Meanwhile, Yemen’s Interior Ministry heightened security measures around the US and Russian embassies in Sanaa after a threat was made yesterday to the American mission.
A security official said the US Embassy received a telephone call and an e-mail early yesterday, saying the two diplomatic missions would be targeted by Al-Qaeda within a few hours.
The official said the Russian mission didn’t receive such a call but Yemen was taking the “threat seriously.” He didn’t provide any more details.
US Embassy spokesman Ryan Gliha confirmed there was a threat and said the embassy was urging all US citizens to exercise caution in Yemen.
Attempts to contact the Russian Embassy were not successful.
Police were seen setting up security checkpoints on two key streets toward the US Embassy, located in an eastern Sanaa neighborhood. Cars and pedestrians were turned back.
There were also checkpoints around the Russian Embassy in downtown Sanaa but traffic was not disrupted.
— With input from agencies
