SANAA, Jan. 23 (Xinhua) -- A Yemeni high-level delegation is due to attend an upcoming international conference in London aimed at supporting Yemen's anti-terrorism efforts, amid fears that local wing of al-Qaida would plan a wave of attacks in the troubled south ahead of the conference, officials and state media said on Saturday.
The delegation, led by Prime Minister Ali Muhammad al-Mujawar, comprises Foreign Minister Abu Bakr al-Kurbi, Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Abdul Karim al-Arhabi and Deputy Prime Minister for Security and Defense Affairs Rashad al-Alimi, state-run Saba news agency reported.
The London-hosted international conference, scheduled to be held on Jan. 27, was called by British Prime Minister Gordon Brown early this month following the failed Detroit plane bombing of which al-Qaida wing in Yemen claimed responsibility.
About 21 countries are expected to attend the London conference on supporting Yemen's efforts to get rid of extremist groups, including the United State, the Gulf Cooperation Council's states, Jordan, Turkey, Russia, Spain, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Canada, the United Nations, the World Bank, Saba said
The conference will seek to encourage donor countries to support Yemeni government in countering terrorism, Saba's report said, adding that the conference also aims at laying out clear-cut strategies to improve political and economic reforms in Yemen.
Meanwhile, Yemen has beefed up security in its troubled southern provinces amid fears that local al-Qaida wing is planning a wave of attacks ahead of the London conference, a senior security official of the Interior Ministry told Xinhua.
He said on condition of anonymity that extra troops and security forces have been deployed to eastern and southern major provinces during the past couple of days.
"The new precaution came amid expectation of violent acts or terrorist bomb attacks by al-Qaida group in retaliation for the recent successful Yemeni air strikes and the campaign of arrest of well-known terrorists," the official said.
Yemen has reportedly declared open war against al-Qaida days after the terrorist group boasted that it was behind the failed bombing attempt that targeted a U.S.-bound airliner.
The poor oil producer country, with a daily output of around 300,000 barrels, has boosted security at oil and gas facilities and western interests which extensively exist in the troubled eastern and southern governorates. It has also tightened security measures around foreign embassies in Sanaa, the capital.
According to local counter-terrorism experts, the failed attempt by Yemeni al-Qaida's wing to bomb the Detroit-bound plane has put Yemen under increasing international pressure to crack down on the terrorist group.
The experts said Yemen, in response to the international community, has launched several air raids against hideouts of the militant organization, known as al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), which has seemingly set up strongholds in remote, desert and mountainous areas of eastern and southern provinces.
The Yemeni government has killed and captured many militants of al-Qaida in a number of successful security operations carried out in the provinces of Marib, Hadramout, Abyan and Shabwa.
