Suspected US drone strikes have killed three alleged al-Qaida operatives in Yemen’s south-western Bayda province, security and tribal officials said, the first such killings reported in the country since Donald Trump assumed the presidency on Friday.
The two strikes on Saturday killed Abu Anis al-Abi, an area field commander, and two others, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to release the information to journalists.
The use of unmanned aircraft as well as airstrikes in Yemen, the Arab world’s poorest country, rose dramatically under President Obama, with data from the Britain-based Bureau of Investigative Journalism showing spikes in attacks, especially in 2012 and 2016.
On Thursday, US intelligence officials said as many as 117 civilians had been killed in drone and other counter-terror attacks in Pakistan, Yemen and elsewhere during Obama’s presidency. It was the second public assessment issued in response to mounting pressure for more information about lethal US operations overseas.
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