14 killed in bomb blast in southern Yemen
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E-mail Xinhua, August 13, 2014
About 14 people, including three explosive experts, were killed and 16 others injured when a bomb they were trying to defuse went off in Yemen's southern province of Lahj on Wednesday, a security official told Xinhua.
"An improvised explosive device (IED) planted in the main street in Lahj province went off at the scene, killing about 11 citizens and three explosive experts and injuring 16 others," the local security official said on condition of anonymity.
Just an hour after the explosion, the army troops and the police exchanged fire with the unknown attackers at the bombing site, with neither side suffering any casualties, the security source said.
A local medic in Ibn Khaldoon public hospital confirmed the casualty toll to Xinhua, saying that "we received the bodies of three army bomb disposal experts and 11 civilians after a bomb being defused exploded."
Earlier this week, heavy security forces were deployed throughout Lahj after suspected al-Qaida gunmen carried out simultaneous attacks on the several government facilities and military bases in the province.
Yemeni military officials blamed militants of the Yemen-based al-Qaida offshoot for a series of assassinations and armed attacks, mostly in the country's southern parts.
Since April, the Yemeni government has waged a major offensive on al-Qaida strongholds in the country's southern territories, killing scores of militants. The al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) based in Yemen has vowed to hit back.
AQAP, also known locally as Ansar al-Sharia, emerged in January 2009 and is considered one of the greatest threats to the Yemeni government and neighboring oil-rich Saudi Arabia.
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