Air strike kills Yemen mediator

An air strike in Yemen targeting al-Qaida missed its mark and killed a mediator, prompting members of his tribe to blow up an oil pipeline in clashes that followed, a provincial official said Tuesday. Separately, a Yemeni government official said a U.S. couple taken hostage by tribesmen were released Tuesday, a day after they were seized near the capital Sanaa. A Yemeni website aligned with the opposition said the strike was carried out by a drone, a weapon that Yemen is not believed to have. U.S. forces have used drones in the past in Yemen, but a U.S. diplomat declined to say if Washington was involved. The strike could heighten anti-U.S. sentiment and broaden al-Qaida's appeal among powerful Yemeni tribes, threatening efforts to stabilize a country neighboring oil power Saudi Arabia and busy international shipping lanes, analysts said.