A US drone strike in Yemen killed nine alleged al-Qaida militants early on Saturday, a security official said, as authorities continue their search for an American photojournalist held by the extremists.

The drone struck at dawn in Yemen’s southern Shabwa province, hitting a suspected militant hideout, the official said. The official did not elaborate and spoke on condition of anonymity as he was not authorised to brief journalists.

At least six suspected militants were killed in an air strike in the same province in November. Tribal leaders on Saturday said they saw helicopters flying over an area called Wadi Abdan in Shabwa province.

There was no immediate comment from US officials. American authorities rarely discuss their drone strike campaign in Yemen. The strikes are incredibly unpopular in Yemen due to civilian casualties, legitimising for many the attacks on American interests.

It was not immediately clear whether the strikes had anything to do with the abduction of Luke Somers, 33, taken in September 2013 in Yemen’s capital, Sana’a.

Yemen’s local al-Qaida branch, Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, posted a video on Thursday showing Somers and threatening to kill him in if the United States did not meet the group’s demands.

In a statement on Thursday the Pentagon press secretary, Rear Admiral John Kirby, acknowledged for the first time that a US raid last month had sought to rescue Somers but that he turned out not to be at the site.

The Guardian