ADEN, Yemen, Dec. 25 — The United States has asked Yemen to allow U.S. Marines to take part in what has been a deadly hunt for members of alleged terror mastermind Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaida network, a Western diplomat and Yemeni officials said Tuesday.

YEMENI FORCES on Dec. 18 launched attacks against armed tribesmen in remote hills of central and eastern Yemen in an attempt to capture suspected operatives of bin Laden. Since the operation began, 24 soldiers and six tribesmen have been killed. Security officials have said five suspects remain at large.
       On Tuesday, Yemen expanded the campaign to arrest the three suspected militants associated with al-Qaida to “include any Islamic extremist elements from any hardline Islamic organization,” a Yemeni official said.
       Western diplomats say most of the militants in Yemen are veterans who fought against the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan in the 1980s. Many are protected by powerful tribal leaders in mountainous regions, one diplomat said Tuesday.
       The diplomat, who spoke on condition he not be further identified, said that in addition to the request that Marines be allowed to join the chase, the United States has proposed setting up a joint task force in Yemen that would includes officials from the CIA and other agencies to coordinate operations. 
       Yemeni officials, also speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed that the government has received the U.S. request and was considering it. 
       The U.S. Embassy in the capital San‘a was closed Tuesday for Christmas. 
       On Monday, Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh received a message from U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell “relating to bilateral relations and joint cooperation between the two countries,” according to the official Saba news agency. 
          The sweep in Yemen appeared to be the most serious military operation yet by an Arab country against al-Qaida. 
       The United States blames al-Qaida for the Sept. 11 attacks in the United States and a deadly October 2000 attack on a U.S. destroyer that was refueling in Yemen’s port of Aden. U.S. officials have pressed the Yemeni government to crack down on the network’s cells in the country. 
       Al-Qaida had been harbored by Afghanistan’s former Taliban rulers, prompting a U.S. bombing campaign that helped opposition Afghan forces topple the Taliban. U.S. ground forces are in Afghanistan now chasing bin Laden and other al-Qaida leaders.