Aden // Ten soldiers were killed on Sunday in a suicide bombing in southern Yemen where extremists groups have carried out a string of attacks.
A further 14 soldiers were wounded when the bomber drove an explosives-laden car into an army position in Abyan province, said a security official.
Groups including Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and ISIL have carried out numerous attacks in the region.
The extremists have tried to take advantage of the conflict between the internationally recognised government and Houthi rebels, who control the capital Sanaa.
A Saudi-led Arab military coalition is supporting president Abdrabu Mansur Hadi in his fight against the Iran-backed Houthis and the their allies, troops loyal to the former president Ali Abdullah Saleh.
Residents north of Sanaa said at least 21 people were killed on Sunday by coalition airstrikes. Two strikes hit workers drilling for water in the Beit Saadan area, the residents said, possibly mistaking the drilling rig for a rocket launcher.
Coalition spokesman, General Ahmed Al Asseri, said “all operations in the area were targeting Houthi positions and members.”
In recent months, the coalition has also been targeting Al Qaeda in the south of the country.
Al Qaeda and ISIL affiliates have escalated their attacks, including in Aden, the government’s temporary capital.
That is despite efforts by government forces to stabilise urban areas they have controlled since ousting Houthi forces from Aden last year.
An ISIL suicide car bombing targeting young army recruits in Aden killed at least 71 people on August 29.
The Saudi-led coalition, which includes the UAE, launched its military campaign in March 2015 as Houthi rebels closed in on Mr Hadi in his refuge in Aden, forcing him into exile.
Backed by the air power and ground support of the coalition, government forces pushed the rebels out of five southern provinces last summer.
The United States has also carried out numerous drone strikes against Al Qaeda operatives in Yemen.
* Agence France-Presse
