By Melike Ince
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

SANAA, Yemen – Ten police cadets in Yemen’s capital of Sanaa were killed in a suicide bombing allegedly carried out by a member of al-Qaeda.

On Wednesday, reports came in that the cadets were leaving their academy after class for a weekend with their families when the bomber threw himself into the crowd and detonated the explosives attached to his body.  At least fifteen people were wounded in the attack.  Authorities stated that the bomber died from severe injuries shortly afterwards.  Those who witnessed the aftermath detailed the deadly scene that ambulances rushed to.

“We ran to the place and found dozens of cadets covered in blood. Blood was everywhere. The scene was horrific,” said police official Fadel Ali.

According to security officials, twelve suspects were originally arrested in connection tothe attack.  The government released the attacker’s name as Mohamed Nasher al-Uthy, but later retracted that statement and announced that the body had not yet been officially identified.  The family of the man accused stated that al-Uthy was a driver who routinely drove cadets home and had no affiliation with al-Qaeda.  Opposition parties claim that this “mistake” was done to undermine the new regime by those in the government who maintain loyalty to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh.  President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, who took office after the uprisings that ended Saleh’s three decade rule, has launched an investigation into the attack.

Al-Qaeda has claimed responsibility for the bombing.  The organization, which is particularly prevalent in the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, has been known to target security forces in the past and has been labeled the global terror movement’s most dangerous group.  In May, another al-Qaeda suicide bomber killed more than ninety people in a military establishment during a rehearsal for a parade.

The weakening of the government’s rule during the Arab Spring uprising allowed the terrorist organization to take certain territories that would later be turned over following US-backed attacks.  The militants have vowed to attack areas all across Yemen in retaliation for the continuing offensive on their strongholds.

For further information, please see:

Yemen Online – Yemen President Launches Investigation into Cadet Attack – 14 July 2012

BBC News – Yemen Attack Deadly Bombing at Sanaa Police Academy – 11 July 2012

Al Jazeera – Deadly Bombing at Yemen Police Academy – 11 July 2012

The Washington Post – Suicide Attack on Yemeni Police Cadets Kills at Least 10; Government Blames Al-Qaeda – 11 July 2012