AHMED AL-HAJ
Associated Press

SANAA, Yemen (AP) — Suspected al-Qaida militants killed a senior army officer in front of his home in the capital Sanaa, Yemen’s Defense Ministry said.

The ministry said in a statement Saturday that two men on a motorcycle opened fire at Brigadier-General Abdullah al-Mehdar, a member of the committee assigned to restructure the armed forces, and fled.

Yemeni media said Sunday that al-Mehdar was seriously injured last year in a bomb explosion, also in front of his home, and was flown to Jordan for treatment.

Meanwhile, a Yemeni security official said a U.S. drone attacked targets Saturday in the province of al-Bayda, a militant stronghold, but could not provide further information. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to brief the media.

Yemen’s branch of al-Qaida, also known as Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, is seen by Washington as the most dangerous in the world and has been linked to several attempted attacks on the U.S. homeland.

Washington has been assisting Yemeni counterterrorism forces with logistics, training and drone attacks. The militants have fought back, targeting government buildings and security forces.

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