Police officer shot dead in Yemen’s Aden

By Fuad Mosaad

ADEN, Yemen (AA) - A police officer was gunned down in Yemen’s southern Aden city Monday in an attack claimed by Daesh group.

Gunmen opened fire on the officer in northern Aden, killing him on the spot, a local security source told Anadolu Agency, requesting anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to media.

Yemeni authorities have yet to comment on the attack.

The shooting was swiftly claimed by the Daesh group via a statement circulated by supporters on Twitter.

Aden, the temporary seat of the Yemeni government, has seen a spate of bombings and attacks in recent months.

Last week, a party leader affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood group was killed in Aden.

Yemen has been ravaged by civil war since late 2014 when Houthi rebels overran capital Sanaa, forcing President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi and his Saudi-backed government to temporarily flee to Riyadh.

In March last year, Saudi Arabia and its Arab allies launched a massive military campaign in Yemen aimed at reversing Houthi military gains and restoring Hadi’s embattled government.

Backed by Saudi-led airstrikes, pro-Hadi forces have since managed to reclaim large swathes of the country’s south -- including provisional capital Aden -- but have failed to retake Sanaa and other strategic areas.