Yemeni militants affiliated with the Shiite Houthi group have kidnapped 22 tribesmen from the northern Arhab region, tribal sources said Monday.

"The Houthi militants kidnapped 22 people from Arhab tribe, including children, in Beit Maran district before taking them to an unknown location," one of the sources told The Anadolu Agency on the condition of anonymity.

The kidnapping came one day after two Houthi militants were killed in the same district in a roadside bombing, he added.

The Houthis have staged an aggressive campaign in Arhab district for several weeks now under the pretext of fighting Al-Qaeda.

Last month, the Arhab tribe decided to withdraw its fighters from flashpoint areas in the district that carries the same name in order to avoid clashes with the Houthi militants.

Bombing hits house of Houthi leader in Sanaa

Meanwhile, at least six people were injured when an explosive device went off at a house of a senior Houthi leader in central Sanaa on Monday, security sources said.

According to the sources, three people inside the house of senior Houthi leader Nagi Mohieldin were injured in the blast while three passersby were wounded as they were outside the house at the time of the bombing.

It is yet unclear whether Mohieldin was at the house at the time of the bombing.

No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.

For the last several months, the Shiite Houthi group – which boasts thousands of diehard supporters countrywide – has been trying to step up its armed presence across fractious Yemen.

The Houthis recently emerged as a political and military power in Yemen after taking over capital Sanaa in late September, from which they have sought to extend their influence into other provinces farther afield.

The Houthis' growing power has pitted the group against Sunni tribes and Al-Qaeda, the latter of which is said to still be active in certain parts of the country. 

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