Israeli arrested in Yemen on spy charges

Yemeni media reported Wednesday that an Israeli citizen has been arrested in the country on suspicion he was a member of an Israeli spy network.

According to reports, the man was arrested in the southern province of Ta'izz several weeks ago and goes by two names: Abdullah Muhsan al-Himi al-Siari and Abraham al-Deri.

The suspect was taken for questioning in Aden. A security source added that he was jailed several weeks ago and was recently moved to a different holding facility.

According to Yemeni media, this is the first time an Israeli citizen has been arrested in the country. In 2009, a court sentenced a local man to death after he was convicted of spying for Israel. A different court sentenced two other citizens to 3 and 5 years in prison for similar charges.

Last week, Israeli citizen Andre Pshenichnikov, 25, was arrested in Taba after entering Egypt without a passport. He was taken in for questioning on suspicion of espionage.

According to reports in Egypt he entered the country through the mountainous area which borders on the Taba hotel, where he was caught. He is suspected of photographing security facilities in Taba.