Terrorist bombing may have targeted Koreans yet again

A possible suicide bomber has again targeted Koreans in Yemen, officials there told wire services.

Korean officials, however, say it’s too soon to know what was behind the second bombing. What is clear is that a bomb exploded in Yemen yesterday as two vehicles carrying South Korean government officials, family members of Sunday’s bombing victims and the victims’ remains were on their way to the airport in Sana, the Yemeni capital.

The officials had been sent to investigate the earlier bombing that killed four South Korean tourists.

According to the ministry, the bomb went off between a Yemeni patrol car and one of the vehicles. A high-ranking Foreign Ministry official in Seoul said no one in the convoy was injured though the car windows were shattered.

The government officials and family members continued on to the airport. They are scheduled to arrive in Korea today.

The Korean government said it was still trying to determine whether the bomb had been planted on the roadside, had been thrown from a distance or had been carried by a suicide bomber. A high-ranking ministry official said while there was a bloodstain on the attacked vehicle, no one in the car actually bled following the explosion.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Moon Tae-young used the words “terrorist bombing” in his statement on the explosion. Yemeni security officials told various wire services that yesterday’s attack was a suicide bombing.

One security source told Reuters that the bomber was waiting by the roadside before the attack. One official told the Associated Press that the bomber walked in between the two cars and set off the bomb.

If that proves to be true, it would likely mean the attacker had knowledge of the convoy’s whereabouts and targeted the Koreans. The same official said the convoy included the South Korean ambassador to Yemen, Kwak Won-ho, but the Foreign Ministry here said that wasn’t true.

“It’s not clear whether the Koreans were specifically targeted,” an official said on condition of anonymity. “It could have been a random attack [by militants] against the government, since there was a Yemeni police car in the convoy [suggesting it was escorting high-ranking officials].” Foreign Ministry spokesman Moon added that the Korean government “has all possibilities open.”

According to the ministry, in the cars were three surviving family members, two government officials from Seoul, one official from the Korean Embassy and an employee of the Korean travel agency used by the victims.

By Yoo Jee-ho Staff Reporter[jeeho@joongang.co.kr]