Dozens of military recruits killed in Islamic State attack

SANAA, Yemen — A suicide car bombing claimed by the Islamic State in Yemen’s southern city of Aden on Monday killed at least 54 pro-government recruits, officials said, underscoring how the militant group has been able to exploit Yemen’s civil war to stage large-scale attacks.

The military recruits were gathered at a staging area near two schools and a mosque when a pickup truck suddenly accelerated through the building’s gate as a food delivery arrived, exploding amid the crowd, witnesses said.

“Bodies and body parts are scattered all over the place,” said Mohammed Osman, a neighbor who rushed to the scene. “It was a massacre.”

The death toll steadily rose through the day and by mid-afternoon, the director of Aden’s Health Ministry, Khidra Lasour, said 54 had died from the explosion. Almost 70 people were wounded, including 30 seriously, and were being treated in hospitals.

Security officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, identified the bomber as Ahmed Seif, distributing a photo of him smiling and holding an assault rifle next to a flag used by Islamic extremists as well as a rocket-propelled grenade launcher.

Yemen is embroiled in a civil war pitting the internationally recognized government and a Saudi-led coalition against the Shiite rebels known as Houthis, who are allied with army units loyal to a former president. The fighting has allowed al Qaeda and an Islamic State affiliate to expand its reach, particularly in the south.

The recruits were signing up to join a new unit the Saudis hope will ultimately be made up of 5,000 fighters. After some training, the new force will deploy to the Saudi cities of Najran and Jizan, near the border with Yemen, the officials said.

Hundreds have already arrived in the border province of Jawf and the adjacent province of Marib. The Houthis control most of northern Yemen, including the border regions and the capital, Sanaa.

The Islamic State-run Aamaq news agency said the attack was carried out “by a fighter from the Islamic State who targeted a recruitment center.”