Qaeda in Yemen an urgent concern: Clinton
Leaves for Oman, talks expected to focus on Iran
The United States views al-Qaeda militants operating from Yemen as an urgent concern, Hillary Clinton said on Tuesday in the first visit to Sanaa by a U.S. secretary of state in 20 years.
Washington is anxious for Yemen, next door to the world's top oil exporter, to step up its fight against an al-Qaeda wing based in Yemen, where militants have attempted ambitious attacks against U.S. and Western targets.
"I want to be frank. There are terrorists operating from Yemeni territory today, many of whom are not Yemeni, some of whom I'm sorry to say are American citizens. So this is an urgent concern for both of us," Clinton told a civil society gathering in Sanaa following talks with Yemen's president.