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US hostage 'dies' after rescue bid US hostage Luke Somers dies after rescue bid
(35 minutes later)
UK-born US hostage Luke Somers dies after operation to rescue him from al-Qaeda captors, US officials tell US media A US journalist held by al-Qaeda militants in Yemen has died after a military operation to rescue him, US and Yemeni officials say.
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest version. Luke Somers was shot by his captors during a raid and later died, a US official told the New York Times.
If you want to receive Breaking News alerts via email, or on a smartphone or tablet via the BBC News App then details on how to do so are available on this help page. You can also follow @BBCBreaking on Twitter to get the latest alerts. His sister, Lucy Somers, told the Associated Press that she had been notified by the FBI of his death.
UK-born Mr Somers, who was kidnapped in Yemen in 2013, had appeared in a video appealing for help.
Yemen's defence ministry confirmed a "major operation" had taken place in Yemen's southern Shabwa province on Saturday.
Mr Somers was apparently fatally wounded during the joint US-Yemeni special forces bid to free him.
"We ask that all of Luke's family members be allowed to mourn in peace," Lucy Somers told AP, speaking from London.
A drone strike believed to have been carried out by the US is reported to have killed nine suspected al-Qaeda militants in the region.
Mr Somers, 33, worked as a journalist and photographer for local news organisations. His material appeared on international news outlets, including the BBC News website.
He was kidnapped outside a supermarket in the Yemeni capital Sana'a in September 2013 and is believed to have been sold on to al-Qaeda in the Arab Peninsula (AQAP).
The video of him released this week showed a member of AQAP threatening to kill Mr Somers unless unspecified demands were met.
The Pentagon confirmed that an an attempt to rescue Mr Somers last month had failed.
His family appealed in a video to al-Qaeda militants in Yemen to "show mercy" and release him.
"Luke is only a photojournalist and is not responsible for any actions the US government has taken," his brother, Jordan, said in a video.
AQAP is regarded by the US as one of the deadliest offshoots of al-Qaeda.
The group is based in eastern Yemen and has built up support amid the unrest which has beset the impoverished country since the overthrow of President Ali Abdullah Saleh in 2011.