Al-Qaeda militants killed four soldiers from an elite Yemeni unit in an overnight attack on their post near the central town of Baida, a security official said Saturday.

Al-Qaeda militants killed four soldiers from an elite Yemeni unit in an overnight attack on their post near the central town of Baida, a security official said Saturday.

The attack also wounded two other soldiers, before the Al-Qaeda militants set fire to an army vehicle and fled the scene, the official said.

The army sent reinforcements and launched a hunt for the assailants in the surrounding mountains, said the official, cited by the official Saba news agency.