Solved case · 2013
Also known as 2013 Iranian diplomat kidnapping
The short answer
An Iranian embassy staff member was abducted at gunpoint in Sana'a, Yemen in July 2013 by al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and held hostage for roughly 20 months before being released in March 2015 in exchange for five al-Qaeda leaders.
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Suggest coverage for Kidnapping of Nour Ahmad NikbakhtNour Ahmad Nikbakht, an administrative staff member at the Iranian Embassy in Sana'a, Yemen, was kidnapped on 21 July 2013 while traveling from his home to the embassy. According to the account, unidentified gunmen affiliated with al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula blocked the road, forced him out of his vehicle, and took him to an undisclosed location. After his eventual release, Nikbakht stated, "I was kidnapped by unknown gunmen and terrorists as I left my home to go to work."
A Yemeni tribunal later indicated that Nikbakht was held by al-Qaeda militants in an area spanning the southern provinces of Shabwa and Baida. Describing his time in captivity, he said, "I was in an extremely difficult situation and I did not know what was happening in the outside world."
In the weeks following the abduction, Yemeni authorities said they had no leads on his whereabouts. Iran's deputy foreign minister, Hossein Amirabdollahian, said a joint working group had been formed between Iranian and Yemeni foreign ministries to address the case, and stated that the Yemeni government bore responsibility for the diplomat's safety and safe return. Iran's foreign ministry summoned Yemen's chargé d'affaires in Tehran on two occasions to press the point that Yemen was responsible for Nikbakht's safety.
Nikbakht was held for approximately two years. He was released in March 2015 as part of an exchange in which five al-Qaeda leaders were freed. The day before his release, Iranian officials stated that he was in good health. Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said intelligence officers had carried out a difficult and complex rescue operation but did not provide further details. Iran's intelligence minister, Mahmoud Alavi, said the operation had occurred with the lowest possible casualties and stated that Tehran had refused conditions set by the captors for the diplomat's release.
On 5 March 2015, Nikbakht arrived at Mehrabad International Airport in Tehran, where he was reunited with his family and greeted by Iranian officials.
Nour Ahmad Nikbakht is abducted at gunpoint while traveling to the Iranian Embassy in Sana'a, Yemen.
Yemen's foreign ministry states it has no leads on the whereabouts of the abducted diplomat.
Nikbakht is released after roughly two years in captivity, in exchange for five al-Qaeda leaders.
Nikbakht arrives at Mehrabad International Airport in Tehran and is reunited with his family.
Victims first. Every legal label is set from public records and court outcomes, not from the prose.
Administrative staff member of the Iranian Embassy in Sana'a, kidnapped on 21 July 2013 and held for approximately two years before release in March 2015.[3]
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Credit: Voice of AmericaPublic domainSourceSOLVEDListenYemeni Ministry of Defense complex, Sanaa, Yemen · 2010s
On 5 December 2013, AQAP-affiliated militants detonated a car bomb and stormed the Yemeni Ministry of Defense complex in Sanaa, occupying a hospital and killing 52 people, including medical staff and patients, before AQAP later apologized for the hospital attack.
Credit: Ljuba brankCC BY-SA 3.0SourceUNSOLVEDListenTemple of Awwam, Marib Governorate, Yemen · 2000s
On 2 July 2007, an al-Qaeda suicide bomber rammed a car bomb into a convoy of Spanish tourists exiting the Temple of Awwam in Marib Governorate, Yemen, killing eight tourists and two Yemeni drivers and wounding others; a Spanish investigation was later closed in 2011 amid a lack of Yemeni cooperation, and no perpetrators were ever tried.
Credit: English WikipediaEditorial useSourceSOLVEDListenDelta, Fulton County, Ohio · 2016
Sierah Joughin, a 20-year-old Ohio college student, was abducted while bicycling home in Fulton County on July 19, 2016, and found dead three days later. James Dean Worley, a neighbor with a 1990 abduction conviction who was not listed in any offender database, was convicted of her murder in 2018 and sentenced to death, prompting Ohio's Sierah's Law, which created a searchable violent-offender registry.
Credit: Wisconsin Department Of JusticePublic domainSourceSOLVEDListenBarron, Wisconsin · 2018
A 13-year-old Wisconsin girl was abducted from her home after her parents were fatally shot in October 2018 and was found safe 88 days later after escaping her captor's rural cabin in January 2019.
Credit: Wfsa 12 NewsEditorial useSourceSOLVEDListenAuburn, Alabama · 2019
Aniah Blanchard, a 19-year-old Alabama college student, disappeared from Auburn in October 2019 and was later found dead of a gunshot wound; the man convicted of her murder was sentenced to life in prison in 2026.
Credit: U.S. Navy photo by Ensign Elizabeth WilliamsPublic domainSourceSOLVEDListenAden harbor, Yemen · 2000
On 12 October 2000, al-Qaeda suicide bombers detonated an explosives-laden boat against the USS Cole while it refueled in Aden, Yemen, killing 17 U.S. Navy sailors and injuring 37 others.
