Sanaa, Dec 6 (IANS): American photojournalist Luke Somers, who was held by the Al Qaeda in Yemen, died during a rescue operation in the province of Shabwa in Yemen.

Somers succumbed to the injuries sustained during the operation, Al Jazeera reported citing a senior official in the president's office.

Luke, 33, was abducted in September 2013 from the streets of Yemeni capital Sanaa. He worked as a freelance photojournalist for the Yemen Times.

Somers was shot at by his captors as a joint air raid by the US and Yemeni forces unfolded and was badly wounded. He died while being flown to a US naval base in the region.

Ten Al Qaeda fighters were also killed in the raid.

Somers pleaded for help in a video posted Thursday on the Twitter account of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.

"We ask that all of Luke's family members be allowed to mourn in peace," his sister, Lucy, was quoted as saying, having been informed by the FBI of his death.

Earlier, conflicting reports came out about Somers' fate, as both Yemeni officials and the the US State Department seemed to be unaware of the end result of the rescue operation.