Air raids hit Qaeda Yemen camp, militants killed-official

Warplanes attacked an al Qaeda camp in southern Yemen on Sunday, killing and wounding a number of militants, a local official said.

The aircraft launched four air strikes on militants of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) near the port city of Mukalla on Yemen's south coast, he said.

The official said the planes were from a Saudi-led coalition which over the past year has tried to stop the Iran-allied Houthi group from completing its takeover of the country.

It was no immediately possible to confirm the affiliation of the aircraft. A spokesman for the Saudi-led alliance could not be contacted for immediate comment.

U.S. aircraft have staged attacks on AQAP fighters in Yemen in recent weeks.

AQAP has exploited the Yemeni war to expand its control, seizing Mukalla, the capital of Hadramout province, last year and recruiting more followers.

The Houthis have been battling forces loyal to Yemen's Saudi-backed President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi since March 2015 in a conflict that has cost more than 6,200 lives.

 

 

REUTERS