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Gunmen kill police colonel, four others in Yemen’s Aden

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Unidentified gunmen have killed a police officer and four others in Yemen's Aden in a wave of attacks targeting security forces in the violence-plagued port city.

Assailants on Sunday opened fire on a police vehicle carrying Colonel Taha al-Sobeihi in Aden's Mansura district, killing him along with a bodyguard and a female bystander, a security official said.

Al-Qaeda and the rival Islamic State group both have a presence in the city, where jihadists occupy government buildings and are seen patrolling several districts and intimidating civilians.

They have claimed a string of attacks and assassinations in recent months.

Late Saturday, unidentified gunmen killed a soldier in Mansura, a security official said.

The man was a recruit in a new force that is loyal to President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi and trained by the Saudi-led coalition, which in March launched a military campaign against rebels who had overrun large swathes of the country.

Armed Yemeni men look at the wreckage of a vehicle in the aftermath of a suicide car bombing on Janu...
Armed Yemeni men look at the wreckage of a vehicle in the aftermath of a suicide car bombing on January 18, 2016 on the residence of Aden's police chief, General Shalal Shaea
Saleh Al-Obeidi, AFP/File

Hadi last year named Aden as his government's temporary capital after Iran-backed rebels stormed the capital Sanaa in September 2014.

Jihadists in the city have distributed pamphlets in mosques, warning men against enrolling in the new force against Huthi insurgents, claiming it would "bring back tyranny", residents said.

Another man was shot dead Saturday when gunmen attempted to kidnap him along with his father in Aden's Crater district, a security official said. The two belonged to the Shiite Bohra minority.

Four members of that community have been kidnapped by "extremists" in the past days in Aden, three of whom have already been released, the official said.

Meanwhile, suspected Al-Qaeda militants blew up a vacant police station in Huta, the main city in Lahj province, which is controlled by loyalists.

Hadi returned to Aden after loyalists backed by coalition forces pushed the rebels and their allies out of the city and four other southern provinces in the summer.

The president sought refuge in Aden from the rebel-held capital last February, but a Huthi advance on the south in March forced him to flee to Riyadh.

Unidentified gunmen have killed a police officer and four others in Yemen’s Aden in a wave of attacks targeting security forces in the violence-plagued port city.

Assailants on Sunday opened fire on a police vehicle carrying Colonel Taha al-Sobeihi in Aden’s Mansura district, killing him along with a bodyguard and a female bystander, a security official said.

Al-Qaeda and the rival Islamic State group both have a presence in the city, where jihadists occupy government buildings and are seen patrolling several districts and intimidating civilians.

They have claimed a string of attacks and assassinations in recent months.

Late Saturday, unidentified gunmen killed a soldier in Mansura, a security official said.

The man was a recruit in a new force that is loyal to President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi and trained by the Saudi-led coalition, which in March launched a military campaign against rebels who had overrun large swathes of the country.

Armed Yemeni men look at the wreckage of a vehicle in the aftermath of a suicide car bombing on Janu...

Armed Yemeni men look at the wreckage of a vehicle in the aftermath of a suicide car bombing on January 18, 2016 on the residence of Aden's police chief, General Shalal Shaea
Saleh Al-Obeidi, AFP/File

Hadi last year named Aden as his government’s temporary capital after Iran-backed rebels stormed the capital Sanaa in September 2014.

Jihadists in the city have distributed pamphlets in mosques, warning men against enrolling in the new force against Huthi insurgents, claiming it would “bring back tyranny”, residents said.

Another man was shot dead Saturday when gunmen attempted to kidnap him along with his father in Aden’s Crater district, a security official said. The two belonged to the Shiite Bohra minority.

Four members of that community have been kidnapped by “extremists” in the past days in Aden, three of whom have already been released, the official said.

Meanwhile, suspected Al-Qaeda militants blew up a vacant police station in Huta, the main city in Lahj province, which is controlled by loyalists.

Hadi returned to Aden after loyalists backed by coalition forces pushed the rebels and their allies out of the city and four other southern provinces in the summer.

The president sought refuge in Aden from the rebel-held capital last February, but a Huthi advance on the south in March forced him to flee to Riyadh.

AFP
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With 2,400 staff representing 100 different nationalities, AFP covers the world as a leading global news agency. AFP provides fast, comprehensive and verified coverage of the issues affecting our daily lives.

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