Al-Qaeda leader killed in Yemeni army offensive, officer shot in capital
Yemeni defence ministry announced the death of Al-Qaeda leader Abu Islam Al-Chechany who was killed by the Yemeni army during its fifth day offensive against al-Qaeda militants in the south of Yemen, reported BBC.
Al-Chechany is the second foreign fighter to be reported dead this week.
Also early Monday, a Yemeni army officer was gunned down by unidentified gunmen in the heart of the capital Sanaa, a security source said.
"Unidentified assailants fired on a major working at the military music institute in Sanaa, killing him instantly," the source told Anadolu Agency on condition of anonymity.
Security forces cordoned off the area but are yet to make any arrests, the source added, giving no further details.
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No group has claimed responsibility for the deadly attack.
The Yemeni army said Sunday that its forces killed 37 Al-Qaeda militants and wounded scores others during an ongoing security operation in the southern province of Shabwah.
"Most of the slain Al-Qaeda elements are foreigners…from Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Somalia and Chechany," an unnamed military source was quoted as saying by the official Saba news agency.
Furthermore, bomb disposal experts on Sunday managed to deactivate an explosive charge planted near intelligence headquarters in the central Yemeni city of Al-Bayda', a security source said. The source added that unidentified people believed to be affiliated with Al-Qaeda had planted the explosive charge near the building, but a bomb disposal team managed to defuse it.
Al-Bayda' has been the site of sporadic confrontations between the army and al-Qaeda, which has a presence within the city.
Yemen has recently started an offensive against Al-Qaeda elements in the southern provinces of Shabwah and Abyan.
The country has been dogged by turmoil since pro-democracy protests in 2011 forced autocratic president Ali Abdullah Saleh to step down after 33 years in power.
In recent months, scores of security personnel have been killed in attacks across the country, which officials blame on suspected Al-Qaeda-linked militants.
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