Britain suspends flights from Yemen

LONDON - Britain Wednesday suspended all direct flights from Yemen.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown told parliament the twice-weekly Yemenia Airlines flights have been suspended with immediate effect.

Announcing a series of security measures, Brown said Yemen had emerged as an incubator and potential safe haven for fleeing Al Qaeda terrorists as they come under increasing pressure in Pakistan.

Yemen and Somalia were now the most significant regions for terrorist activity after the Pakistan-Afghanistan border areas, which remains the number one security threat to the west, he said.

Brown also said Britain’s existing terror watchlist will be used to create two new lists: a no-fly list and a larger list of those who should be subject to special measures including enhanced screening prior to boarding flights bound for the UK.

The announcement followed last month’s failed attempt by Nigerian terrorist Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, who was trained by the Al Qaeda in Yemen, to blow up a transatlantic flight.