Two Gunmen Killed in Clash with Yemen Police
Gunmen attacked a government complex Thursday in Yemen's central province of Baida, an al-Qaida stronghold, sparking a firefight that killed two assailants and wounded three policemen, the defense ministry reported.
"An armed terrorist group" attacked the complex where the residence of Baida deputy governor Sinan Halqum is also located, the ministry's 26sep.net news website cited an army spokesman as saying.
The spokesman gave no further details about the assailants he labelled "terrorists", a term Yemeni authorities generally use for members of al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), which is frequently blamed for most anti-government attacks.
Taking advantage of a collapse of central authority during a 2011 uprising that forced veteran strongman Ali Abdullah Saleh from power, AQAP seized swathes of south and east Yemen.
According to an Agence France Presse tally compiled from official and other sources, Yemeni security forces lost 374 personnel battling al-Qaida, northern rebels and southern separatists as well as in targeted assassinations during the first half of 2014.
Source: Agence France Presse
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