Daesh targets army volunteers in Yemen's Aden; 30 killed

By Fouad Mussad

ADEN, Yemen

At least 30 people were killed by a suicide car-bomb -- responsibility for which has been claimed by the Daesh terrorist group -- that targeted a crowd of army volunteers in Yemen’s port city of Aden on Monday, according to witnesses and local security sources.

Sources told Anadolu Agency that 20 army volunteers had been killed by the bomb, which, they said, was detonated by a suicide bomber outside the home of Major-General Abdullah al-Subaihi, commander of the Yemeni army’s 39th Brigade, in Aden’s central Al-Inshaat district.

The sources, who spoke anonymously due to concerns for their safety, said al-Subaihi had been at home when the incident occurred.

Although the brigade commander survived the attack, they added, four of his bodyguards had been among those killed.

A prominent Yemeni military leader, al-Subaihi led the battle last summer to recapture Aden from the Shia Houthi militant group.

While Daesh has since claimed responsibility for the bombing, the Yemeni government has yet to issue an official statement.

Since the recovery of Aden last summer by pro-government forces (with the help of a Saudi-led military coalition), the port city has witnessed numerous attacks, for which Daesh and Al-Qaeda have mostly claimed responsibility.

Yemen has suffered violence and chaos since September 2014, when the Houthis and their allies overran capital Sanaa and several other parts of the country, forcing President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi and his Saudi-backed government to temporarily flee to Riyadh.

In March of last year, Saudi Arabia and its Arab allies launched a massive air campaign in Yemen aimed at reversing Houthi gains and restoring Hadi’s embattled government.