Car bomb in Yemen targets security commander; 4 killed

SANAA, Yemen (AP) - A car bombing in southern Yemen killed for people on Tuesday and wounded a dozen others, including a senior security commander, officials said.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the bombing but such attacks are common in war-torn Yemen, where fighting between government forces and Iran-backed Houthi rebels has raged for over seven years. The al-Qaida and the Islamic State groups are also active in several regions of Yemen.

Tuesday's bombing took place in the city of Zinjibar and targeted the convoy of Abdel-Latif al-Sayed, commander of the so-called Security Belt force in the southern province of Abyan, the officials said. Zinjibar is the Abyan provincial capital.

The Security Belt militia is trained and funded by the United Arab Emirates and loyal to the secessionist Southern Transitional Council. However, it is also nominally an ally of the Saudi-led coalition that has waged war on the Houthi rebels since 2015 in an effort to restore Yemen's internationally recognized government to power.

The casualties - al-Sayed's companions and guards - were taken to hospitals for treatment, they said.

The explosion damaged at least four vehicles of al-Sayed's convoy, according to the security officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief media. Images from the scene showed at least one burnt white Toyota pick-up truck.

Al-Sayed spoke to local media and said he was slightly wounded in what he called a 'œterrorist attack.'ť He did not give further details.

In October, at least 14 people were killed in two separate explosions in the southern city of Aden, the seat of the internationally recognized government.