About three members of the Yemen-based al-Qaida branch were killed in a U.S. drone strike in Yemen's southeastern region on Monday, a security official told Xinhua.

According to the local official who asked to remain anonymous, the U.S. unmanned aircraft fired three missiles at a suspected al-Qaida vehicle that was traveling in a desert area located between the eastern province of Marib and southeastern Shabwa province.

"About three people onboard were all burned along with their personal automatic rifles," the source said.

The identities of militants are not immediately available.

Earlier in the day, about five army soldiers were killed in a suspected al-Qaida attack in southern province of Abyan, where al-Qaida has large presence.

Following the resignation of Yemeni president along with his prime minister and due to the security vacuum in the country, the al-Qaida group started to recruit new fighters in south, according to local Yemeni officials.

U.S. President Barack Obama announced on Sunday that Washington had not suspended its counter-terrorism operations against the al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) in Yemen following the control of the Shiite Houthi group over the country's capital Sanaa.

AQAP, known locally as Ansar al-Sharia, emerged in January 2009. It is considered one of the greatest threats to the Yemeni government and neighboring oil-rich Saudi Arabia. Endit

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