Sanaa — The U.S. embassy in Sanaa was closed to the public Thursday, May 8, after a spate of attacks against foreigners and fears that al-Qaeda will seek revenge for a deadly offensive in the south.

“The embassy is closed today. And this will remain in effect until further notice,” an employee at the U.S. mission in a heavily-guarded neighbourhood in northeast Sanaa said.

Police were deployed along all roads leading to the embassy and conducted a thorough inspection of vehicles in the vicinity in line with security measures put in place several months ago.

State Department spokeswoman Jan Psaki said Wednesday that the embassy would be temporarily closed to the public “due to recent attacks against Western interests in Yemen.”

These attacks “and information we have received have given us enough concern to take this precautionary step,” she said in a statement.

The developments came as Yemen pressed with a deadly offensive against strongholds of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) in the lawless south of the country.

As the operation entered its 10th day Thursday the defense ministry announced that the army had seized control of a major AQAP stronghold in Azzan, in southern Shabwa province.

Authorities have reported that several al-Qaeda commanders were among dozens of suspected militants killed since the operation was launched on April 29.