Kidnapping attempt halted by security [Archives:2008/1150/Local News]

Almigdad Mojalli
SANA'A, April 26 ) The Central Security Police on Tuesday prevented members of the Bani Dhabyan tribe from kidnapping four engineers in Marib governorate, according to security and tribal sources in the area.

The foiled kidnapping attempt targeted four engineers, who annually check flood alarms in canals which lead to Marib dam. Sources in the tribe stated that the Central Security Police in the governorate injured three of the kidnappers at a police checkpoint while the police tried to release the hostages.

“We received notification of the abduction on Wednesday morning. At 8 am, the kidnappers reached the checkpoint and immediately they knew that we were looking for kidnappers. They fired at us first and our soldiers injured three of them and transferred them to the President hospital,” said Mohammed Omer, the head of the Central Security Police in Marib governorate. “The engineers were released on Wednesday and escorted to the road divergence point of Hazm Al-Jawf,” he added.

The attempt came one week after the release of five engineers and two children who were kidnapped by the tribe and held for nine months. Bani Dhabyan released the hostages two weeks ago for a YR 85 million ransom.

The five engineers and two children were abducted over a land dispute. Lead kidnapper Abd-Rabu Al-Tam claimed that he owned part of a plot of land sold to Ali Mohsen Al-Ahmer, the head of the northwest military district. But Al-Tam claims that despite the successful sale of the land, he never received his share of the proceeds. Instead his partners, Ahmed Obaid Shereif, Saleh Naji Khassa'an and Abdullah Al-Kumaim, sold the land to Al-Ahmer and never gave him his share of YR 70 million.

In addition to YR 70 million, Al-Tam demanded YR 150 million as the money that he spent trying to reclaim his share over one and a half years.
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