Sanaa:
A US drone strike killed four Al Qaeda suspects in Yemen on Tuesday, a tribal source said, amid heightened security across the Middle East against a possible major attack by the jihadists.
Those killed included one of 25 Al Qaeda operatives listed late on Monday by the Yemeni authorities as among those plotting attacks to coincide with the ending of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan later this week, the source told AFP.
The raid in Yemen's eastern Marib province targeted their vehicle "and turned it into a ball of fire, immediately killing the four militants," the source said, adding that all those killed were Yemenis.
Yemen's official Saba news agency confirmed "the death of four Al Qaeda militants in Wadi Abida in Marib."
The tribal source named two of the dead as Saleh al-Tays al-Waeli and Saleh Ali Guti.
Waeli figures on the list of 25 Al Qaeda suspects wanted in connection with an alleged plot to launch a major attack before Ramadan ends and the Eid al-Fitr feast begins, either Thursday or Friday.
Yemen promised a five million rial reward (about $23,000) in return for information that could lead to the arrest of any member of the group, the defence ministry's news website 26sep.net reported.
Among those listed is the Saudi Ibrahim al-Rubaish, a former Guantanamo prisoner who fled to Yemen after being repatriated to Saudi Arabia.
He is believed to be the mastermind behind providing Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula with theological justification for its operations.
Saudi Arabian explosives expert Ibrahim al-Assiri is also on the list.