Three injured in car bomb explosion in Aden, Yemen

An Islah party member and his son were in the vehicle when it blew up

A car bomb exploded in Madram Street in the Al Mualla area of Aden on July 31, 2018, injuring three people including its occupants. Photo by Ali Mahmood

At least three people were severely injured when a car exploded in the southern port city of Aden on Tuesday.

The incident took place near the Mualla Plaza hotel on Madram Street in the Al Mualla district.

A security source told The National that two passengers, a man and his son, were in the moving vehicle when it exploded. He said the man was believed to be a member of the Islah party, which is affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood.

A third man, a passer-by, was injured in the incident. All three were taken to hospital.

According to witnesses, the men sustained serious burns and injuries. The authorities have not announced their identities.

"The street was very calm with the usual flow of traffic, when a white Sonata suddenly blew up and a loud explosion was heard," a witness, who lives in the area, told The National.

“The blast was so strong that the car flew up in the air and landed in another spot.

“We rushed to the vehicle to find two severely injured people. One would be almost impossible to identify as his whole body was burnt, and the younger passenger was missing both legs.”

An Aden Police spokesman told The National that the recent acts of violence in the city were a result of Qatar's support for extremist groups in the region.

"Qatar and Iran are on the same track, they are funding terrorist groups in liberated areas to prevent the progress made by the Arab Coalition, especially in Aden, where the UAE has played a key role in restoring stability to the city," Abdulrahman Al Naqeeb said.

"Qatar has been creating instability in the liberated areas through funding terrorist groups from the Muslim Brotherhood, the Houthis and ISIS, who have common interests that serve Iran. The regime of Qatar has been funding many media outlets in Yemen to discredit the efforts of security forces in the liberated areas," he claimed.

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An Aden security source said that preliminary investigations show that a bomb was planted in the car and detonated via remote control.

Associated Press said Islah party member Aref Ahmed Ali was among four people injured in the explosion on Tuesday morning,

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

The incident comes days after armed men killed a senior intelligence officer in Aden.

Col Nasser Makrij, who was the chief intelligence officer at Aden International Airport, was shot dead by men on a motorcycle as he walked on a street near his home.

Aden became the internationally recognised government’s de facto capital after the Iran-backed Houthi rebels took control of Sanaa in 2015.

On Sunday, Aden police chief Brig Shallal Ali Shaiya met Interior Minister Ahmed Al Maysari to discuss a new security plan.

The men agreed to order additional security patrols in Aden and along the city's entrances, and to further develop the police force and stations.

Pro-government forces, backed by the Arab Coalition, have been battling the Houthis, who control Sanaa and parts of northern Yemen.

The coalition, which includes Saudi Arabia and the UAE, intervened in the Yemen war in March 2015 at the request of the internationally recognised government of President Abdrabu Mansur Hadi to restore its power and push back the Tehran-backed rebels.

Up to 10,000 people have been killed in the conflict in Yemen, which — according to the UN — is on the brink of famine.