Aden suicide car bomb attack kills 60
AL HOUTHI LINK SEEN IN RAID ON ARMY TRAINING CAMP CLAIMED BY DAESH
Asuicide car bomb attack claimed by Daesh on an army training camp in Yemen’s second city of Aden killed at least 60 people yesterday, medical sources said.
A security official said that the attacker drove his vehicle into a gathering of new recruits at the camp in northern Aden.
Officials and analysts link the latest attack to recent government territorial gains in the fighting against Al Qaida in southern Yemen.
On Saturday, Yemen’s army liberated the entire province of Abyan from the terror group.
Backed by heavy aerial support from the Saudi-led coalition, army troops have recently launched a major offensive to oust the terrorists, who have long exploited the continuing civil war to expand in the south.
By the liberation of Abyan, Al Qaida has lost all of their bastions in south Yemen.
Yemeni authorities with UAE help have trained hundreds of soldiers in Aden over the past two months as part of the operations to retake neighbouring southern provinces from the militants.
The attack claimed by Daesh could be linked to Iran-backed Al Houthi militants and supporters of ousted Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh, Yemen’s Deputy Minister of Interior Major General Ali Nasser Lakhsha told Gulf News.
“They could have encouraged the terrorists to carry out such an attack as they (Al Houthis) do not wish to see us succeed,” Lakhsha said.
Security forces in Aden and other southern provinces have achieved major victories in the war against Al Qaida who has taken advantage of a security vacuum since Yemeni forces have been busy battling Al Houthi militants.
“They are targeting army and police recruits because they are the nucleus of the national army,” he added.
Meanwhile, cross-border shelling from Yemen by Al Houthi militia has killed three children in Saudi Arabia and wounded nine other people, according to the Saudi Press Agency.
In one of the attacks, two Saudi girls were killed and five of their family members wounded when a rocket hit their home in Najran.
Cross-border shelling from Yemen by Al Houthi militia has killed three children in Saudi Arabia and wounded nine other people
Security authorities in Yemen’s port city of Aden have vowed to hunt down Al Qaida and Daesh affiliates everywhere shortly after a suicide bomber killed at least 60 army recruits yesterday morning.
Officials and analysts link the attack to the recent government territorial gains in the fighting against Al Qaida in southern Yemen.
Speaking to Gulf News from the scene of the explosion, Brigadier General Nasser Al Anbori, the commander of Special Security Forces in Aden, Lahej and Abyan, said that they would not be deterred by such attacks and security apparatus would continue searching for hiding militants.
“They want to send a message that security in Aden and the other liberated areas is fragile,” he said.
Daesh claimed responsibility for the deadly attack targeting recruits in Aden’s Mansoura district.
Local security officials said at least 60 recruits were killed when the suicide bomber drove his explosive-laden car into a gathering of hundreds of recruits in Aden.
The attack, the deadliest in quite some time, comes as government forces said Saturday they had booted Al Qaida out of south Yemen entirely.
The attack could be linked to Iran-backed Al Houthi militants and supporters of ousted Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh, Yemen’s Deputy Minister of Interior Major General Ali Nasser Lakhsha told Gulf News.
“They could have encouraged the militants to carry out such an attack as they (Al Houthis) do not wish to see us succeed,” Lakhsha said.
Security forces in Aden and other southern provinces have achieved major victories in the war against Al Qaida militants who have taken advantage of a security vacuum since Yemeni forces have been busy battling Al Houthi militants elsewhere in the country.
“They are targeting army and police recruits because there are the nucleus of the national army,” he added.
Recent achievements made against Al Qaida by Yemeni forces have been widely praised.
Yasser Al Yafae, a political analyst, told Gulf News, despite these attacks, crime has significantly dropped in Aden and the neighbouring Lahej province after successful operations against Al Qaida.
“Police have been rounding up militants responsible for a string of attacks on security personnel,” he added.
The port city, the temporary base of Yemen’s internationally-recognised government, has seen a wave of bombings and shootings targeting officials and security forces.
Coalition support
The Arab coalition which backs the Yemeni government against Iran-backed rebels has also been providing troops with air cover throughout their war against the militants.
The coalition intervened in Yemen in March last year and has helped government troops push the rebels out of Aden and four other southern provinces.