Yemen arrests U.S. and French students on security grounds

Yemeni authorities have detained several U.S. and French students of Arabic on security grounds, an official said Sunday.

The official said the Westerners had been detained in Sana at the behest of their own governments, but declined to give details of their arrest in the impoverished Arabian Peninsula state.

“A number of American and French students were arrested last week upon requests by their countries’ governments,” the official said, speaking on customary condition of anonymity.

A source close to the government said those held included two Americans and a French citizen, but the official could not confirm that. Officials reached at the U.S. and French embassies had no immediate comment.

Yemen, neighbor to top oil exporter Saudi Arabia, has been a key Western security concern since Al Qaeda’s Yemen-based regional arm claimed responsibility for a failed December attempt to bomb a U.S.-bound passenger plane.

Yemen’s Western allies and Saudi Arabia fear Al Qaeda is trying to exploit instability in the country, with conflicts in its north and south, to use it as a base to launch attacks in the region and beyond.