PRESS RELEASE | June 3, 2016
June 3: U.S. Central Command announces Yemen counterterrorism strikes
June 3, 2016

Release Number 20160603-15
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

TAMPA, Fla. – The U.S. military conducted a counterterrorism strike against al-Qa’ida in the Arabian Peninsula May 19 in the Shabwah Governorate in central Yemen, killing 4 al-Qa’ida operatives.

This is the ninth counterterrorism strike conducted by the U.S. military against AQAP in Yemen in 2016. The Defense Department previously announced a strike conducted March 22 against an AQAP training camp in Yemen which is assessed to have killed 56 AQAP operatives. On May 6, CENTCOM also announced four strikes conducted between April 23-28 against AQAP, which killed 10 al-Qa’ida operatives and injured one. In addition, CENTCOM can confirm today three additional and previously unannounced counterterrorism strikes against AQAP in Yemen:

* A strike Feb. 3 in Shabwah Governorate in central Yemen, which killed 6 al-Qa’ida operatives

* A strike Feb. 29 in Hadramawt Governorate in east Yemen, which killed 3 al-Qa’ida operatives

* A strike March 30 in the vicinity of Azzan in central Yemen, which killed 2 al-Qa’ida operatives

AQAP remains a significant threat to the region, the United States and beyond. Al-Qa’ida’s presence has a destabilizing effect on Yemen, and it is using the unrest in Yemen to provide a haven from which to plan future attacks against our allies as well as the U.S. and its interests.

The U.S. will not relent in its mission to degrade, disrupt and destroy al-Qa’ida and its remnants. We remain committed to defeating AQAP and denying it safe haven regardless of its location. Strikes conducted by the U.S. in Yemen continue to diminish AQAP’s presence in the region.