Shi'ite militia abduct senior Yemen intelligence official

 A senior Yemeni intelligence official was abducted in Sana'a on Thursday by Shi'ite fighters from the Huthi militia in control of the capital since a September offensive, security sources said.

Sana'a: A senior Yemeni intelligence official was abducted in Sana'a on Thursday by Shi'ite fighters from the Huthi militia in control of the capital since a September offensive, security sources said.

"General Yahia al-Marrani... was kidnapped this morning by armed Huthis from his home in Sana'a," a source told a news agency.

Another source said that about 20 Huthis had stormed Marrani`s residence and taken him to an unknown location.

The kidnapping was confirmed to a news agency by a relative of the officer, who had served for five years as head of the police intelligence unit in Saada province, a Huthi stronghold in north Yemen.

He was named as a director in Yemen`s intelligence services by President Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi, who took power following a 2012 uprising that unseated longtime ruler Ali Abdullah Saleh.

Yemen has been rocked by instability since the Shi'ite fighters, who are also known as Ansarullah, seized control of Sana'a on September 21.

The Huthis have since expanded their presence in central and western Yemen, but have been met by fierce resistance from Sunni tribes and al Qaeda militants.

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