Military officials say 10 killed in air strike on hideout and six killed in missile attack on vehicle in troubled southern region
Yemeni troops have killed at least 16 militants in the troubled south where the army is trying to uproot al-Qaida, military officials say.
In one attack, Yemeni warplanes struck an al-Qaida hideout about 45 miles (70km) from Zinjibar, the provincial capital of Abyan, killing at least 10 militants. The army also fired missiles at a moving vehicle on the outskirts of Lawder, killing six militants, the officials said.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak to the media.
The town was controlled by al-Qaida last year until residents drove them out. They have since been trying to stage a comeback.
Monday's raids came a day after bombings of al-Qaida positions across the south killed at least 30 militants.
Al-Qaida-linked fighters have seized towns and territory across southern Yemen over the past year, taking advantage of a security vacuum linked to the political turmoil that pushed the longtime authoritarian leader Ali Abdullah Saleh from power.
The front lines are concentrated around Zinjibar and another Abyan town, Jaar, where al-Qaida has held sway since March 2011. If the military were to reclaim the two strongholds, it would deal a severe blow to the militants, leaving them scattered in remote mountain areas away from urban centres.
In Jaar, militants sought refuge from Sunday's intense bombardment inside government buildings in the town centre. Warplanes dropped leaflets urging residents not to let the militants hide in their homes.
The intensifying war against al-Qaida in Yemen – which the US says is one of the terror network's most active – is a top priority for Saleh's successor and former deputy, Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi. He took office in February in a US-backed power transfer deal and has since intensified the fight against al-Qaida.