total of 10 members of Al-Qaida’s branch in Yemen escaped from a prison in the southeastern province of Hadhramout, a government official said.

“The prison break occurred late on Thursday night when a number of prisoners attacked the wardens in Seiyun city,” the local official on condition of anonymity told Xinhua news agency.

The 10 Qaida members who managed to break prison have been charged with launching terror operations in Yemen, he added.

The pro-government forces are carrying out a huge manhunt for the fugitives, the official told Xinhua.

The Yemen-based Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula has claimed responsibility for many high-profile attacks against newly-recruited security troops, in an attempt to exploit years of conflict between the Yemeni government and the Houthi rebels to expand its presence in the war-ravaged country.