Kidnapping in Yemen

The family of Yemeni businessman Abdul Hakim Hussein Shamsan, who was kidnapped on November 20, said that his kidnappers threatened to kidnap his brother.

The family sent a message to the governor of Aden saying that a tribesman named S. H. Breiqish extended another threat against the family in a telephone call, saying that he will soon kidnap the brother of Abdul Hakim, Muhammad Hussein Shamsan, who is also a businessman.

Armed men kidnapped Shamsan when he was leaving a mosque in Aden and took him to Maareb,e east of Sanaa. The kidnappers did not specify their conditions. The family of the kidnapped man appealed to Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, now in Aden, to intervene to free Shamsan.

Meanwhile tribal and security sources said on Tuesday that the Yemeni authorities arrested nine members of the Bani Zubian tribe who kidnapped four German tourists yesterday, including at least one woman.

An official at the national commission for tourism said that the authorities gave the kidnappers a grace period of 24 hours. The governor of Sanaa, Naji Abdullah, was sent to negotiate with the tribe.

Tribal sources stated that the kidnapping is related to the demands of tribesmen for the implementation of development projects.