Militants seize Yemen southern town

ADEN: Dozens of al-Qaeda militants took control of the southern Yemeni town of Ahwar on Saturday, residents said, consolidating the group’s control over much of the region.

The coastal city and surrounding district, in Abyan province, is home to more than 30,000 people and is an important geographic link between the major port city of Mukalla to the east and the smaller town of Zinjibar, both of which al-Qaeda seized months ago.

"At dawn this morning the al-Qaeda gunmen clashed with the Popular Resistance forces, killing three of them," one resident said.

"They attacked the sheikh in charge of the area and after he escaped set up street checkpoints and planted their black flag on government buildings.

"Separately, two gunmen riding a motorbike killed one of the most senior commanders in the Popular Resistance, a loose confederation of southern militias opposed to al-Qaeda.

Sheikh Mazen al-Aqrabi was killed along with a bodyguard in Yemen’s second-largest city of Aden in the southwest, an eyewitness and a security official said. The gunmen were believed to be from al-Qaeda, according to the official.

Residents in Aden’s Mansoura neighbourhood also reported heavy explosions on Friday night as gunmen launched shoulder-fired rockets in a failed attempt to take over a container port.

Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), a Sunni group that claims to be subordinate to the main global militant organisation, has expanded during Yemen’s civil war.