Al Qaeda frees 300 inmates in raid on Yemen jail

Khalid Batarfi, a senior Al Qaeda figure among more than 300 prisoners who escaped

Al Qaeda militants stormed a prison in southeastern Yemen on Thursday, freeing several hundred inmates including one of their leaders, a security official said.

Khalid Batarfi, a senior Al Qaeda figure who had been held for more than four years, was among more than 300 prisoners who escaped from the jail in Hadramawt province, the official told AFP.