Yemen frees 5 Indonesian students

Yemen frees 5 Indonesian students

SAN'A: Yemeni authorities freed on Sunday five Indonesian students detained under the Yemeni government's anti-terrorism campaign.

The release was announced by Yemeni Deputy Foreign Minister Abdullah Mohammed Al-Saidi after he met with the Indonesian Ambassador to Yemen Yulwis Yatim.

Three of the five Indonesian students were arrested on March 3, 4, and 9 respectively. There was no information about the date of the arrest of the other two students.

According to Ambassador Yulwis, some of them have decided to return to Indonesia.

Al-Saidi expressed regret over the arrest and said he hoped that the incident would not affect bilateral ties.

Following the terrorist attacks in the United States on Sept. 11, Yemeni authorities have arrested hundreds of foreign students from Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Algeria and Morocco.

The government has arrested 42 Indonesians since last December due to security concerns.

Twenty-one of the 42 Indonesian students were released on Feb. 3 and the remaining 21 students were freed on Feb. 21. They all have returned home. -- Antara