رئيس ملف قطر يشدد على استضافة "بطولة عالم مدمجة"

اعتبر الشيخ محمد بن حمد ال ثاني رئيس لجنة ملف قطر لاستضافة كأس العالم 2022 لكرة القدم ان ملف بلاده يأخذ بعين الاعتبار مصلحة المشجعين واللاعبين مشيرا إلى استضافة "بطولة عالم مدمجة" وذلك في مقابلة مع هيئة الإذاعة البريطانية "بي بي سي".

The commander, Qassim al-Raimi, did not reveal the size of the new fighting force, but said its ranks were already overflowing with so many volunteers -- including some from abroad -- that many had to be turned away.

Yemen's al-Qaeda-allied militants and other extremists have long sought to topple Saleh's government in response to its relationship with the United States, which is deeply concerned about al-Qaeda's reinvigorated operation in Yemen.

Apart from al-Qaeda, government forces are facing a separatist movement advocating the secession of Yemen's southern provinces, which joined with the north in 1990.

19 arrested

The bombs went off at Al-Wahda club in the Sheikh Othman area of Aden, the main city Yemen's south, wounding 17 people, three of whom later died, according to medical officials. Two policemen were among the wounded.

Authorities attributed the blasts to the accidental explosion of an old bomb.

However, an official told AFP on Tuesday that 19 suspects, most of them believed to belong to al-Qaeda, were arrested in connection with the double bombing.

Another official said "this cowardly act cannot defeat (security) plans" that the authorities have put in place for the 20th Gulf Football Championship to be staged in the region between Nov. 22 and Dec. 5.

And a sports official told AFP that two unexploded bombs were found in the sports club on Tuesday.

Security fears have risen in Yemen's south following a string of similar attacks, most recently on Sunday when assailants fired a rocket-propelled grenade at a police patrol, wounding one person.

And on Oct. 7, dozens of protesters invaded Aden's Al-Shoala sports club, where some of the football matches are to be held, and demanded the release of people arrested in common law cases.

30,000 soldiers and police

Despite the attacks, President Saleh said government forces would be able to ensure the security and smooth running of the competition for the participants from Yemen, Iraq and six Gulf states.

The tournament "will take place, God willing, without incident," Saleh said in early October, after inspecting the security arrangements in place for the competition.

He announced that 30,000 soldiers and police would be mobilized to form "three belts of security around Aden, Abyan and Lahij," the latter being a nearby province.

"There is no cause for concern," he said, adding the uncertainty about security arrangements was "intended to instill fear" in the participants.

A few days before, vice interior minister General Ali al-Zaouari, declared he was certain of the success of the security plan, as "the units charged with implementing it have been well trained."

Some countries have expressed reservations about participating to Yemeni officials.

"Certain football federations doubt the capacity of Yemen" to host the championship, the president of the United Arab Emirates football association, Yussef Abdullah, was quoted as saying in Al-Khaleej newspaper, citing problems of infrastructure and logistics.

Aden has generally been spared from violence that has plagued other areas of the south, but Abyan province is a centre of protest against the government in Sanaa and the site of frequent attacks against security forces.

Yemen, the poorest country in the Arab world, faces a sporadic rebellion by northern Zaidi Shiites in addition to the al-Qaeda threat and the southern separatist movement.