A suspected al-Qaida suicide bomber blew himself up on Wednesday in Yemen's central province of Ibb, killing about 33 people, security sources and medics told Xinhua.

"A suspected al-Qaida bomber blew himself up among about 40 Houthi followers at a celebration ceremony at the Ibb culture center when he was waiting for security check," a security officer at the scene told Xinhua by phone.

"The governor of Ibb province, Yahya Mohammed al-Eryani who attended the ceremony, survived the attack," he added.

Medics told Xinhua that 33 bodies were sent to the nearby hospital, while 15 injured were in critical conditions.

A bodyguard of the governor said al-Eryani was injured in the attack.

However, a spokesman of the Houthi group denied the death toll provided by medics, saying only two supporters of the group were killed in the attack and declined to provide further details.

This is the third bombing attack by al-Qaida against the Houthi group this month.

On Dec. 16, an al-Qaida group launched a car bombing attack against a Houthi office in the central province of al-Bayda, killing 40 people including 20 children.

Two days later, al-Qaida militants conducted a suicide car bombing attack in the western port city of al-Hodayda, killing 18, most of whom are Houthi followers.

In the meantime, al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), known locally as Ansar al-Sharia, claimed responsibility for the Ibb suicide attack against Houthis in a short message posted on social media accounts. It vowed to carry out more attacks against Houthis in the next days.

Security situation in Yemen rapidly worsened after the Shiite Houthi group took over the capital Sanaa by force in September. More than 400 people were killed in the week-long fighting.

After overrunning the capital, the Houthi group has started to deploy fighters in the country's southern regions, where the AQAP was active. The Houthi group clashed with the AQAP several times in provinces of Marib, al-Bayda, Ibb and Hadramout, leaving dozens dead from both sides.

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