Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Reuters
Reuters
Politics

Car bomb hits convoy of southern military commander in Yemen

A burnt out car is pictured at the site of a car bomb attack on the convoy of a Yemeni southern military commander in Abyan, Yemen March 15, 2022. REUTERS/Abdullah al-Dhabi

A car bomb struck the convoy of a Yemeni southern military commander in Abyan province, killing two soldiers and seriously injuring two others on Tuesday, a military official said.

Brigadier General Abdul Latif al-Sayed survived the assassination attempt, said Mohammed al-Naqib, spokesman for the Southern Armed Forces. He said two assailants were killed.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack that was also confirmed by residents and medical sources.

Wreckage of a vehicle is pictured at the site of a car bomb attack on the convoy of a Yemeni southern military commander in Abyan, Yemen March 15, 2022. REUTERS/Abdullah al-Dhabi

Instability in the south, where the Saudi-backed government is based, complicates U.N.-led efforts to end the seven-year-old Yemen war. The U.N. special envoy is holding talks with Yemeni parties to build a framework for political negotiations.

Al-Sayed is the commander in Abyan of the Security Belt, the military forces of the separatist Southern Transitional Council (STC) which is backed by the United Arab Emirates.

The STC is part of a military coalition led by Saudi Arabia and which includes the UAE that intervened in Yemen in March 2015 after the Iran-aligned Houthi movement ousted the government from the capital, Sanaa.

But STC has vied with the internationally recognised government for control of Aden and Yemen's wider south.

Last October, Aden's governor, who is an STC member, survived a car bomb in the port city that killed six people.

The multifaceted war in Yemen has killed tens of thousands of people and pushed millions to the brink of famine.

(This story corrects headline to bomb, from bombs)

(Reporting by Reyam Mokhashef and Mohammed Ghobari; Writing by Ghaida Ghantous, Editing by William Maclean)

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.