'Several' Americans held in Yemen by Shia rebels, US state department says

Houthi rebels who toppled Yemen's US-backed government holding Americans in Sanaa

WASHINGTON: Several Americans have been detained in Yemen, a State Department official said Sunday, amid reports that at least four US citizens are being held by Shiite rebels.

The Washington Post reported that the Americans were believed to be held by the Huthi militia in a prison near the capital Sanaa, and that US efforts to secure their release had faltered, hampered by the fact that Washington has no direct links to the rebels.

The State Department had seen the "reports that several US citizens have recently been detained in Yemen," the official told AFP.

"We are doing everything we can to get these individuals released," the official said, but would not say how many were held or who was holding them.

But he could not confirm any details about how many where held or who was holding them.

At least four Americans were being held, according to the Washington Post.

The Americans are believed to be imprisoned in the capital Sana'a, which Saudi Arabia has repeatedly bombed in a campaign to oust the Shia rebels, known as Houthis, from power, the report said.

The Houthis had cleared one of the prisoners for release, but the report said members of the Houthi rebellion reversed that decision.

Three of the prisoners held private sector jobs, and the fourth holds dual US-Yemeni citizenship. None is a US government employee, the report said.

The Post report said the newspaper was withholding details about the four, at the request of relatives and US officials, who cited safety concerns.

One more American is being held in Yemen. Sharif Mobley is also in Houthi custody. He's been held for more than five years on terrorism-related charges brought by the previous government; his capture has been reported previously.

The Post report said those most recently detained are among dozens of Americans who were unable to leave Yemen or who chose to remain in the country after the US closed its embassy.

US officials said that efforts to secure the release of the Americans had been mainly through "intermediaries including humanitarian groups that continue to have a presence in Sanaa," the Post said.

One of the prisoners had been approved to be released in recent days, but the rebels went back on their decision, the Post said.

He had initially been detained for overstaying his visa, but then the rebels accused him of travelling to "sensitive" areas in Yemen, a US official told the Post.

A fifth American, identified by the daily as Sharif Mobley, is being held on terrorism charges brought against him more then five years ago, the paper said. - AFP