|
ADEN, Yemen, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- Suspected al-Qaida gunmen attacked a military intelligence compound in Yemen's western port city of Hodyada on Friday, killing 10 soldiers, a police officer told Xinhua.
"The terrorist al-Qaida attackers raided the military intelligence headquarters a few minutes after a booby-trapped car exploded inside the compound in Hodyada, leaving 10 soldiers killed at the scene," the local police officer said on condition of anonymity.
"Most of the soldiers were killed in the car bombing that severely demolished the intelligence building and set two vehicles on flames," the police source said.
Furthermore, a security official, who declined to be named, told Xinhua that several al-Qaida attackers were killed during clashes with a security unit that arrived to the blast area later.
Witnesses said that black smoke could be seen rising from the bombing site amid sounds of heavy gunfire were heard around the area.
So far no group has claimed responsibility for the terrorist attack, but local security sources blamed the al-Qaida terrorist group for the attack.
The Yemen-based affiliate of the Islamic State group had claimed responsibility for several suicide attacks that targeted Houthi-controlled mosques in the capita Sanaa this year.
Security sharply deteriorated in Yemen since early March when conflicts erupted in several provinces in the country's southern and northern regions.
Yemen, an impoverished Arab country, has been gripped by one of the most active regional al-Qaida insurgencies in the Middle East.
