According to local authorities, a senior Yemeni commander was killed in an attack by Al-Qaeda militants in southern Yemen on Tuesday.
Al-Qaeda militants attacked a security checkpoint in Ahwar district in Abyan province, the government-aligned Security Belt Forces (SBF) said.
Without giving a specific toll, Yasser Shaye, commander of the 1st Battalion, and a number of soldiers were killed in the attack. During the attack, six al-Qaeda militants were also reported to be killed.
However, 15 soldiers and seven militants were killed in the attack, Ahmed al-Madahdah, the director of Ahwar Hospital, said.
Usually attributed to Al-Qaeda, which is active in the mountainous areas on the outskirts of Ahwar and Al-Mahfad districts, east of the provincial capital Zinjibar, military headquarters in Abyan come under frequent attacks.
Control of Abyan province is shared by the Yemeni army and forces of the allied Southern Transitional Council.
