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U.S. Airstrikes Hit Terrorists in Yemen

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The U.S. military conducted airstrikes over eastern Yemen during the weekend, targeting the sites of extremist group al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, director of Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. Jeff Davis told reporters today.

The guided-missile cruiser USS Port Royal returns to its homeport at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, March 24, 2017. The Port Royal had completed a 212-day deployment to the Arabian Sea, the Arabian Gulf, the Gulf of Oman, the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, the South China Sea, the Western Pacific and the Indian Ocean. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Jeff Troutman
The guided-missile cruiser USS Port Royal returns to its homeport at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, March 24, 2017. The Port Royal had completed a 212-day deployment to the Arabian Sea, the Arabian Gulf, the Gulf of Oman, the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, the South China Sea, the Western Pacific and the Indian Ocean. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Jeff Troutman
The guided-missile cruiser USS Port Royal returns to its homeport at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, March 24, 2017. The Port Royal had completed a 212-day deployment to the Arabian Sea, the Arabian Gulf, the Gulf of Oman, the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, the South China Sea, the Western Pacific and the Indian Ocean. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Jeff Troutman
USS Port Royal
The guided-missile cruiser USS Port Royal returns to its homeport at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, March 24, 2017. The Port Royal had completed a 212-day deployment to the Arabian Sea, the Arabian Gulf, the Gulf of Oman, the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, the South China Sea, the Western Pacific and the Indian Ocean. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Jeff Troutman
Photo By: Petty Officer 2nd Class Jeff Troutman
VIRIN: 170324-N-ON468-076

“We continue to target [al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula] in Yemen, and this is done in the interest of disrupting a terror organization that presents a very significant threat to the United States,” Davis said.

Strikes Target Terrorists

During the weekend in Yemen’s Shabwah governorate, the precision airstrikes targeted al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula terrorists, as well as the terrorists’ infrastructure, fighting positions and equipment, the spokesman said.

The airstrikes follow the late-January U.S. raid in Yemen during which a U.S. service member died. From Feb. 28 through last week, some 50 airstrikes were conducted, Davis noted.

The weekend airstrikes, which were largely unmanned, bring the total to 70, he said.

(Follow Terri Moon Cronk on Twitter: @MoonCronkDoD)

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