Senior Yemeni official survives car bomb in Aden

A car bomb attack on the convoy of a Yemeni military official in the southern port city of Aden killed at least six people and wounded several others on Wednesday, military officials said.

The head of security forces of Lahj province Saleh al-Sayed survived the assassination attempt, three military officials said. At least five civilians and one military officer were killed and six others were seriously wounded in the attack, two of them said.

Videos from the scene showed the dead and injured lying in a minibus, while a cloud of black smoke rose from the explosion site. The bombing was the latest to target security officials in the key port city, which serves as the headquarters of Yemen’s internationally recognized government.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack but al-Qaeda militants have stepped up their operations in south Yemen recently. At least 10 Yemeni soldiers were killed there in two separate attacks last week.

Instability in the south, where the internationally-recognized government is based, complicates international efforts to end the seven-year-old conflict. Several attacks have been recorded despite a ceasefire agreement.

Sayed is Lahj’s commander of the military units of the Southern Transitional Council (STC).

last month Maj. Gen. Saleh Ali Hasan, commander of joint operations at the Aden based 4th Military Regime, was inside his armed SUV in Mualla, Aden, when a nearby car exploded Local authorities have blamed the Iran-backed Houthis or Al-Qaeda and Daesh for a string of similar attacks targeting security and military officials in the city.

The Yemeni government accused the Houthis of refusing to lift their siege on Taiz and continuing to attack government troops and civilian targets, mainly in Taiz and Marib.