Yemeni tribesmen kidnap 2 Chinese engineers and 2 guards in Yemen’s troubled south

Yemeni tribesmen kidnap 2 Chinese engineers

SAN’A, Yemen — Yemeni security officials say tribesmen have kidnapped two Chinese engineers and their government escorts in the country’s volatile south.

The officials say the Chinese were working for an oil firm operating in Shabwa province, south of the capital San’a. They say tribesmen took the men hostage Sunday apparently to protest the Yemeni government’s failure to take action against policemen who recently wounded a tribesman at a checkpoint.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not allowed to speak to the media.

Most kidnappings of foreigners in Yemen are by disgruntled tribesmen hoping to wrangle concessions from the government — including ransoms, the release of jailed relatives, or even promises to build local infrastructure.