ISIL bombings kill at least 20 in Mukalla

The suicide bombers targeted a military intelligence office and two checkpoints manned by tribal fighters as soldiers were sitting down to iftar.

Aden // At least 20 people were killed in a string of ISIL suicide car bombings targeting Yemeni government troops in Mukalla district of Hadramawt province on Monday.

The bombers struck as the soldiers were breaking their fast after sunset.

The first two bombings were at a military intelligence office in the Fwah area, while the third and fourth bombers struck at checkpoints manned by pro-government tribal fighters in the Al Dees area and near Mukalla airport

The attacks were claimed by ISIL through its online news agency Amaq.

The number of injured in the attacks was immediately known, according to a journalist in Mukalla who asked to be identified.

“There is no figure of the casualties yet, but there were casualties in the all bombings,” he said.

Some homes were also damaged in the blasts, he said.

There have been a number of bombings targeting Yemeni troops since they liberated Mukalla from Al Qaeda in late April with the help of forces from the Saudi-led military coalition backing Yemen’s government, which includes the UAE.

“The extremist groups are still inside Mukalla and they are waiting for chances to target the pro-government forces,” the journalist said.

Meanwhile, negotiators for Yemen’s government and the Houthi rebels say they plan to suspend peace talks after failing to reach a breakthrough after two months.

Two negotiators representing the rebels and their allies, and one from the internationally recognised government, told Asocciated Press on Monday that the two sides were drafting a joint statement to announce that they will return to talks in mid-July, after Eid Al Fitr.

One of the negotiators, a minister in the government of president Abdrabu Mansur Hadi, said “the return to the talks is meant to save face after reaching a deadlock”.

The announcement came a day after UN chief Ban Ki-moon visited Kuwait, where the two sides have been meeting since April, to encourage them to reach a peace deal. He also called for the release of prisoners, including journalists and other political detainees, as a goodwill gesture ahead of Eid.

The government has demanded the implementation of a UN Security Council resolution calling on the rebels to withdraw from all cities, including the capital, Sanaa, and hand over their heavy weapons. The Houthis want to form a unity government prior to any changes on the ground, according to the negotiators.

The Houthi rebels are backed by Iran and allied to security forces loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, while the government is backed by the Saudi-led coalition. The conflict has killed an estimated 9,000 people since it escalated in March last year and has pushed the Arab world’s poorest country to the brink of famine.

A truce went into effect a week before the talks began, but the two sides have repeatedly accused each other of breaking it.