Clashes between Yemeni army and suspected al-Qaeda militants, in the southern province of Abyan, left seven soldiers killed and six others wounded.

Clashes between Yemeni army and suspected al-Qaeda militants, in the southern province of Abyan, left seven soldiers killed and six others wounded.

"Al-Qaeda fighters hidden in a wooded mountainous area opened fire on army units heading from Dofes to Zinjibar to try to rejoin the 25th Mechanized Brigade," a military officer said.
The incident took place Dofes, a village south of the provincial capital of Zinjibar, which has been seized by militants since the end of May, the source added.

"Seven of our soldiers were killed and six others wounded in clashes which continued for several hours," he added.
On the other hand, to a source at the Al-Razi hospital in the same province, said that at least one militant was killed.

"We received the body of an Al-Qaeda fighter killed in the fighting near Dofes," the hospital source told AFP news agency, identifying the victim as Omar al-Marqab from the northern Al-Jawf province.