Thu 01 August 2019:
Twin suicide bombing attacks killed dozens of civilians in the Yemeni government-held port city of Aden on Thursday.
Three police officers were confirmed killed and several civilians were among the 20 people wounded in the first attack that took place in the Sheikh Othman area of the southern port city, Yemeni medical sources said. However, officials said the toll was expected to rise rapidly and dozens could have been killed.
A suicide bomber drove up to the gates of the local police station and detonated his device as officers were arriving for the start of their shifts.
The second attack targeted Al Jala’a military camp in west Aden.
Reuters news agency reported that a ceremony was taking place at the time of the attack and that the explosion detonated behind the stands full of people. A pro-government military source said a commander was among those killed.
Reuters reported seeing at least nine bodies on the ground after the explosion hit the military camp of Yemeni forces backed by the United Arab Emirates, a member of the Saudi-led Arab Coalition to back the internationally recognised government of President Abdrabu Mansur Hadi.
The rebel Houthi-run Al Masirah TV says the group launched ballistic missiles and drones at the military base.
In January this year, Yemen’s intelligence chief, Brig Gen Saleh Tammah, died three days after being injured in a Houthi drone attack on the country’s largest airbase. The drone targeted the stage from which the officers were reviewing a military parade at Al Anad air base.
Footage of the attack showed the drone flying above the stage before detonating. The Houthis claimed the strike on the rebels’ Al Masirah TV station and said there were “dozens of dead and wounded”. Houthi media reported that the drone was a Qasef-2K model that was designed to explode from a height of 20 metres and rain shrapnel down on its target.
Yemen has been embroiled in a four-year war begun by the Iran-aligned rebels that has so far killed tens of thousands of people and left millions on the brink of famine, the UN says.
Security in Aden has improved in recent months as the Arab Coalition has trained and supported hundreds of local police and the UAE has helped establish a special counter-terrorism force that consists of six, 100-strong units.
Such attacks are relatively rare.
Houthi rebels regularly launch ballistic missile and drone attacks on government forces and over the border at targets in Saudi Arabia, however, they are not known for carrying out suicide attacks.
In 2017, the Houthis did launch a rare suicide attack on a Saudi frigate in the Red Sea, killing two crew members and leaving three wounded.
The rebels used boats packed with explosives to hit the warship off the port city of Hodeidah on the west coast. The first speedboat hit the ship’s stern, causing a fire and killing the sailors, but Saudi warplanes hit two other boats before they could strike, the coalition said at the time.
Previous such suicide bombings have later been claimed by ISIS or Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsular who, despite gains by government forces, remain a potent threat.
Last February, a suicide attack claimed by ISIS in Aden killed a mother and three of her children outside a military base in Aden. At least 40 others were wounded when the bombers detonated their explosive-rigged vehicles in the Gold Mohur area of Aden’s Al Tawahi district.
According to officials, the death toll included a member of Aden’s elite counter-terrorism forces.
Two other attackers wearing explosive belts also tried to climb over the external gate of the military base but were shot dead by guards before they could blow themselves up.
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