UAE airlines ban Yemen cargo after mail bomb plot

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Airlines in the United Arab Emirates say they have stopped carrying cargo from Yemen as a precaution following the discovery of two mail bombs shipped as air freight.

The Middle East's biggest airline Emirates, which operates out of Dubai, and Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways each confirmed the cargo embargoes in response to questions Sunday. Discount carrier Air Arabia, based in the emirate of Sharjah, also said it had stopped accepting freight originating in Yemen.

One of two packages sent in the mail bomb plot late last month was discovered at a FedEx cargo facility by UAE authorities in Dubai. It arrived in the city-state after traveling on two separate Qatar Airways flights, whose officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment on their cargo policies Sunday. The second mailed bomb, shipped by UPS, was intercepted in the United Kingdom.

The two packages contained the industrial explosive PETN packed into the toner cartridges of Hewlett-Packard printers destined for addresses in the United States. While the exact aim of the plot is unclear, a senior U.S. official has said evidence points to a plot to blow up cargo planes inside the U.S., either on runways or over American cities.

The Yemen-based al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula has claimed responsibility for the bombs and has vowed to send more explosives-packed parcels.

Air Arabia, the discount airline, said it put its ban in place Tuesday following a security directive from Emirati authorities, who have not commented in detail about the measure. Etihad said it has been blocking Yemen shipments since sometime last week.

Etihad also said it has stopped carrying goods from Somalia, which sits just across the Gulf of Aden from Yemen and maintains long-standing trade ties with its Arab neighbor. It said in a brief statement the bans will hold "until directives from governments around the world permit carriage of goods from these ports."

Several countries, including the United States, Britain, Germany and France, have taken similar precautionary measures over the past week, with the Germans banning all cargo and passenger flights from Yemen and the Americans temporarily halting all incoming cargo and mail from the poor Arab nation.

The UAE late last week announced it was tightening security at the country's airports to more closely monitor goods from certain unnamed countries. It did not provide details.