SANAA/ADEN (Reuters) – A suicide bombing claimed by al Qaeda killed at least 26 people outside a presidential palace in southern Yemen yesterday, hours after the newly-elected president was sworn in and said the battle against the Islamists was a “national duty”.
A car was driven at the gates of the building in the port city of Mukalla, Yemen’s fourth-largest city, far from the capital Sanaa where Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi was sworn in.
Dozens were injured. The governor of Hadramout province Khalid Saeed al-Dayni said 20 of the dead were soldiers and an investigation was under way to identify the suicide bomber.
Al Qaeda claimed responsibility and said the attack had been carried out by a “Yemeni jihadi”, according to text messages sent to Reuters and other media outlets.
“The sound of the explosion was strong and was heard in many parts of the city,” a resident of Mukalla said.
