Yemeni security forces in Taiz Province announced on Saturday the arrest of the primary suspects involved in the assassination of the UN official, Moayad Hameidi, along with 10 others allegedly belonging to a gang responsible for the attack.
The arrest comes amidst presidential and governmental efforts to mitigate the impact of the incident on international humanitarian interventions in the country.
On Friday, two gunmen riding on a motorbike shot Hameidi in the town of Turbah. He died shortly after reaching a hospital. The attackers fled the scene.
Hameidi, a Jordanian, was the latest aid worker to be killed in Yemen, which has been embroiled in a civil war since 2014. He had just arrived in Taiz a few days ago to assume his role as head of the WFP office in the province.
A Yemeni security media official in Taiz confirmed, in a concise statement, that the security apparatus has apprehended the direct perpetrators of Hameidi’s murder, along with 10 others who were part of a gang involved in the crime.
Earlier, Yemeni security forces in Taiz had announced that they successfully identified the suspects behind the assassination of the WFP coordinator in Turbah and had initiated pursuit operations.
The General Director of Taiz’s police, Col. Mansour Al-Akholi, revealed that a joint security operation under his command had been launched to probe the incident of the assassination of Hameidi, aged 50, and the injury of citizen Saleh Al-Shahatari by two individuals riding a motorcycle in front of Al-Shebani restaurant in the heart of Turbah.
“The loss of our colleague is a profound tragedy for our organization and the humanitarian community,” said Richard Ragan, WFP’s director in Yemen. “Any loss of life in humanitarian service is an unacceptable tragedy.”
UN envoy to Yemen Hans Grundberg also condemned the killing of the dedicated WFP employee.
Grundberg offered his condolences to the Hameidi’s family and friends, stating that he “shares their grief and sorrow along with the humanitarian community in Yemen for this painful loss.”
In response to the crime, Yemeni political parties in Taiz province also condemned the act and called for the implementation of a security plan to protect individuals and international organizations, as well as to prevent any recurrence of such incidents.
They urged swift action to investigate the crime, apprehend the perpetrators, and bring them to justice.
