almotamar-net - Sanaa- The trial of a man suspected of being the al-Qaeda number two has begun in the capital, Sanaa. Saudi-born Mohammed Hamdi al-Ahdal is accused of killing 19 Yemeni security officers as well as financing al-Qaeda and helping an armed group. The trial comes shortly after 23 convicts, including members of al-Qaeda, escaped from prison in Sanaa.

Mohammed Hamdi al-Ahdal was captured in 2003 by Yemeni security forces and his arrest was hailed by Yemeni and US officials as a major blow to al-Qaeda's operational capacity in Yemen. Yemeni security officials believe that al-Ahdal was working directly for the al-Qaeda leader in Yemen, Qaed Senyan al-Harthi, who was killed by a US missile fired from an unpiloted aircraft in 2002.

A second man, Ghaleb Abdullah al-Zayedi, has also been charged with hiding al-Ahdal. Both al-Ahlad and al-Zayedi deny all the charges.

Monday's proceedings began amid tight security.