32 Yemeni troops killed in Al Qaeda attack | WPN World People News

Militants from the global terror network Al Qaeda in a surprise attack killed at least 32 Yemeni soldiers hours after a US drone strike killed a top commander of the terror group who was wanted for his alleged role in the 2000 bombing of the USS Cole in Yemen.

Officials said gunmen stormed a military position in southern Yemen, a hotbed of militants controlling broad swathes of territory in the region.

There has been a surge in violence in Yemen since President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi took office in February. The government has responded with air strikes and the US has repeatedly used drones to kill militants.

The Monday attack came hours after a suspected US drone strike killed two men in a neighboring province, including Fahd al-Quso, described by the government as a senior member of Al Qaeda who figures in the FBI's most wanted list.

Media reports quoting an unnamed military official said gunmen attacked Yemeni troops outside the city of Zinjibar, capital of Abyan province, and also captured a number of soldiers before decamping with weapons and ammunition.

Forty soldiers were wounded in the attack. Militants had left 100 troops dead in a similar attack in March in Zinjibar.

Yemen's government and an al-Qaeda-linked group active in the south both said the missile strike hours earlier in neighboring Shabwa province killed Fahd al-Qasaa, who had been convicted of involvement in the 2000 bombing of the USS Cole warship in Yemen's southern port of Aden.

In a text message to journalists, Al Qaeda said it was holding 28 soldiers.

Source: Middle East News.Net