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3 Yemen soldiers killed in convoy attack

23 August 2014 23:05 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Three Yemeni soldiers were killed Saturday when an explosive device struck their convoy in the country's restive east, a security official said, APA reports quoting Associated Press.

The official said six other soldiers were wounded in the attack on the convoy traveling from Sayoun city to the ancient city of Shibam in the eastern Hadramawt province.

The area has seen intense fighting in recent weeks between security forces and militants following reports that al-Qaida's Yemeni branch intended to take over the province.

Another security official in the country's southern Aden province said a car bomb planted in the vehicle of a military officer killed him and wounded his son. The officer is in charge of supply for the local military units.

The two officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief reporters.

Yemen, one of the Arabs world's poorest nations, is facing multiple challenges. The Yemen-based al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula is considered the global network's most active branch. Washington closely cooperates with Yemen against the group, providing military assistance and training. The U.S. also carries out drone attacks against al-Qaida suspects in Yemen.

Besides the al-Qaida offshoot in the south, the government has been facing a standoff with a powerful Shiite rebel group based in the north that has battled the government and ultraconservative Islamists for years.

This week, the group, known as the Hawthis, took its challenge to the central government to the capital, holding large rallies and setting up tents near ministries demanding the replacement of the government and a reversal of a recent decision to lift fuel subsidies.

On Saturday, a presidential delegation in the north said they presented rebel representatives with a draft proposal suggesting a new government and an economic committee to review recent policy changes.

In exchange, the group would pull out its protesters and supporters from the streets of Sanaa, said Abdel-Malek al-Mikhlafi, a member of the presidential delegation.

The delegation will remain in the northern city of Saada for more talks until Sunday.