First American casualties in Yemen

Either one, two, or three special forces troops seriously wounded in ambush:

SANAA/ADEN (Reuters) - Islamist militants shot and seriously wounded a U.S. military instructor inYemen on Sunday, while the army closed in on a town controlled by al Qaeda-linked fighters in heavy fighting that killed at least 27 people, local officials said.

A U.S. special forces commander toured the frontline in southern Yemen in a visit that highlighted the extent of Washington's support to a government fighting militants it sees as a threat not just the region but also to U.S. soil.

Four Americans, part of a team of instructors in Yemen to train the Arab country's coastguard, were in the vehicle that was attacked in the Red Sea city of Hudaida, a Yemeni coastguard officer said.

"They were leaving their hotel in a Land Cruiser when militants in another car pulled up alongside and opened fire with rifles. One was shot in the neck and the other received a bullet in his leg," he said.

Another source said only one person was wounded.

Ansar al-Sharia (Partisans of Islamic Law) said its operatives waited for the Americans as they left their hotel and then attacked, wounding three.

"The mujahideen (Islamic fighters) managed to hit three of them and, for certain, one suffered a serious injury in the neck," the group said in a statement, adding that the gunmen managed to escape the scene despite a security cordon.

Wonder how many Americans could actually tell you where Yemen is, or why the Obama administration thinks that it is a good idea for us to be there?

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