Yemeni intelligence officer shot dead

A Yemeni intelligence officer was assassinated on Sunday evening in Hadramout, eastern Yemen, by two unknown assailants on a motorbike. Security sources told Arabstoday that the perpetrators are suspected to be linked to Al-Qaeda in Yemen. The assailants opened fire on Ahmed Ba Ramada, deputy head of intelligence for Hadramout, when he was near the mosque Baharoun. Security sources added that the officer was wounded by several gunshots to his body, and died before reaching the hospital in the coastal city of Mukalla. Dozens of intelligence officials and Yemeni army officers were assassinated in similar shootings during 2012, which   security sources also claim Al-Qaeda is likely to be responsible for. Fears are continuing to grow in Yemen that political conflict will encourage opposing parties to commit assassinations against each other.