Wed, July 11, 2012
by Fuad Rajeh
SANAA, July 11 (Xinhua) -- At least 20 cadets were killed and twenty others injured in a suicide bombing at the police academy in Yemen's capital Sanaa on Wednesday despite tight security around key local and foreign installations preventing terrorist attacks.
The deadly bombing was the second in the past two months in Sanaa, after the deadliest-ever attack on a military parade rehearsal in May, which killed about 100 central security forces in the capital, casting shadows over Yemen's peaceful transition process after more than 18 months of unrest.
Marwan al-Sube, one of the cadets slightly injured, said the explosion occurred at the southern gate of the academy while he and his colleagues were coming out.
"No one expected it. Just when we were leaving for the weekend' s vacation, we heard the bombing killing and injuring some of us," he said.
"After we started to compose ourselves, we saw a young man, aged from 18 to 20, badly hurt with some of his body parts cut off, " he said.
"He was the suicide bomber and had been waiting at the academy' s gate," he added.
"It is really sad to see young people kill themselves in this way and the saddest thing is when police or soldiers became an easy target, and where: in the capital," the cadet added.
The attack on Wednesday exposed persistent weaknesses of the authorities in a country with big challenges including the army division, security disorders and economic woes, which were deepened by the 2011 turmoil.
Observers argued the army division is providing militant groups with the opportunity to infiltrate into key places to carry out deadly attacks.
Yemen hosts the most dangerous branch of al-Qaida, the al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), which, according to observers, receives support from tribal illiterate communities and is continuing to exploit the unrest.
With direct support from the United States and tribal fighters in the past few months, the Yemeni army drove al-Qaida militants from key towns and killed hundreds including senior leaders in the south.
In the meantime, an extensive hunt for militants is continuing across the republic, and the authorities have arrested many cells including those responsible for suicide attacks and key fugitives.
Security officials said that after the severe blows in the southern provinces of Abyan and Shabwa, al-Qaida has shifted to suicide bombings, its usual way, to retaliate and exploit disorders in the country.
They said Wednesday's attack bore the hallmarks of the AQAP, which has no goal, but to kill innocents and harm the country's interests.
A senior official at the interior ministry said the attack sent a message about the successful plans of the AQAP, which reaches key places and key soldiers in downtown the capital despite strict security measures.
"It is not impossible to free Yemen from militancy, but it is very essential to put an end to all conflicts and turmoil helping this pandemic grow to dangerous levels," the official said.
One hour after the suicide attack on the police academy, the al- Qaida, which vowed to move the guerilla warfare into the capital Sanaa, claimed responsibility for the bombing.
