At least two army soldiers were killed in an al-Qaida ambush in Yemen's southern province of Shabwa on Tuesday, a police officer said, APA reports quoting Xinhua.

The army troops were attacked by al-Qaida militants in Azzn town in Shabwa province, in which two soldiers were killed and six others injured, the provincial police source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

The soldiers were guarding a convoy carrying salaries for the army troops and running along a main road towards an military brigade in Azzan town when the incident took place.

Three soldiers were missing after the clash, a military source in Shabwa province told Xinhua. The wounded have been shifted to a nearby public hospital.

The same day, unknown gunmen attacked the local government in the southern port city of Aden, seriously injuring three policemen, a security official said.

A witness said that an explosion was heard near Aden's local government building, which was followed by heavy gunfire.

Yemen has seen persistent unrests since 2011, when mass protests then forced former President Ali Abdullash Saleh to step down.

President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi took over power in 2012, but submitted resignation to the parliament on Jan. 22 amid a standoff with the Shiite Houthi group.

The impoverished Arab country has since been mired in a growing secessionism, al-Qaida networks in the south, and other armed groups including the powerful Houthi in the north.
APA