Gunmen seize army headquarters in Yemen’s Mukalla
Iran Press TV
Mon Sep 30, 2013 2:17PM GMT
Yemeni security officials say gunmen have seized an army headquarters in the country’s southern port city of Mukalla.
According to Yemeni military officials, militants from the al-Qaeda-affiliated Ansar al-Sharia seized the seaside base in Yemeni port city of Mukalla on Monday, killing two soldiers and taking many more hostage.
The militants, who were dressed in special forces uniforms and drew up in four military vehicles, stormed the base after a bomber rammed a car into the entrance, a military official said.
"Army troops and security forces have cordoned off the entire area," another military official said, warning that militants would "pay a heavy price" for the attack.
The attack is the second major assault on the Yemeni army in 10 days.
Fifty-six Yemeni police officers and troops were killed in three militant attacks in southern Yemen on September 20 after a US drone airstrike in the area hit a car and killed all the people onboard.
The United States often uses its assassination drones to hit targets in Yemen. Washington claims the drones target “militants,” but international human rights groups say the facts on the ground indicate that civilians are frequently killed in the airstrikes.
Military officials in Yemen blamed the attacks on al-Qaeda militants operating in the Arabian Peninsula. Shabwa Province is a stronghold of the terrorist group.
Al-Qaeda loyalists have carried out a spate of deadly attacks against Yemeni security forces since dictator Ali Abdullah Saleh’s successor, President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, came to power in February 2012.
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