Yemeni security forces have captured a key al-Qaeda leader believed to be behind the threats that forced the United States, British and French governments to close their embassies there last week.

Mohammed al-Hanq is one of the chiefs of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, the group that is allegedly behind the thwarted bomb attack on a plane bound for the US on Christmas Day.

Mr al-Hanq had evaded arrest on Monday during a security raid in Arhab some 40 kilometres north of the capital Sana'a, in which two of his relatives were killed and three other people injured. The al-Qaeda leader fled but was found today in a hospital in the province of Amran, along with two of the injured.

This morning, the British and French embassies resumed operations, although the British mission kept its consular services shut. The US embassy reopened on Tuesday after successful counterterrorism operations by Yemeni forces had addressed a "specific area of concern".

Photo: Yemeni troops step up security in Sana'a by ANP