Yemen 'won't negotiate with Italians' kidnappers'

Yemen’s prime minister said today his government would not negotiate with armed tribesmen holding five Italians hostage.

The stance showed a toughening of policy following the second kidnapping of Western tourists in five days.

Prime Minister Abdul-Kader Bajammal also said that more troops had been sent to the Sirwah mountains of north Yemen, where gunmen of the al-Zaydi tribe kidnapped three Italian women and two male compatriots on Sunday.

When the kidnappers released the women late Sunday, they refused to leave until their abductors released the two Italian men.

The kidnappers have warned security forces not to move further toward their mountain hideout, saying such advances put the lives of the five Italians in danger.

The government “will not negotiate at all with the kidnappers,” Bajammal told reporters in his office.

The prime minister said he had sent the abductors “a stern warning,” the contents of which he did not disclose.

Gunmen from the al-Zaydi tribe have previously kidnapped foreigners and Yemenis in a bid to blackmail the government. In the case of the Italians, the kidnappers have demanded that the state release eight members of their tribe, one of whom faces murder charges and was extradited to Yemen from the United Arab Emirates.

Last month, armed tribesmen kidnapped two Austrians in Marib province and held them for three days, and in November two Swiss tourists were abducted for two days in the same province. All the hostages were released safely.