Yemen jails 9 al-Qaida suspects for plotting to kill president

A Yemeni security court on Sunday sentenced nine al-Qaida suspects to up to 10 years in prison for plotting to assassinate President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, official Saba news agency reported. The court in the capital Sanaa sentenced nine al-Qaida suspects to between two and 10 years in prison for plotting to assassinate Haid by a roadside bomb on his convey in Sanaa during the past months. A similar trial was concluded on Sept. 15, in which three al- Qaida members were sentenced to up to seven years in prison for the same charges. Meanwhile, the court handed down a death penalty against al- Qaida suspect Ahmed Turkey for attacking the intelligence headquarters branch in the southern port city of Aden in 2011 that left at least 20 security personnel killed. The Yemen-based regional al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula is active in the poverty-stricken country, taking advantage of growing chaos and political splits in the south and eastern regions since 2011. Hadi took office in February 2012 after a UN-backed power transfer deal eased former President Ali Abdullah Saleh from power after a year of mass protests. His administration has since intensified efforts to crack down on the militants as part of a U.S.-backed anti-terrorism campaign. Dozens of the militants have been killed by U.S. drone strikes in the campaign. The Yemeni troops defeated al-Qaida fighters in the southern province of Abyan and recaptured their strongholds in May 2012 after a one-year battle.