At least two pro-government Yemeni soldiers were killed early on Friday by a roadside bombing in the country's southern province of Abyan, a military official said.

The local military official said on condition of anonymity that "an explosion caused by roadside bombing struck a security checkpoint in Al Wade'a district, northeast of Abyan province."

He said the explosion resulted in the killing of two security soldiers at the checkpoint and wounded two others at the scene.

Another security unit arrived and launched a campaign for tracking the suspected terrorist elements in the area, he added.

Sporadic armed attacks and bombings are targeting the military checkpoints of the pro-government Yemeni forces stationed in the country's southern part.

The Yemen-based al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) network, which mostly operates in eastern and southern provinces, has been responsible for many high-profile attacks against security forces in the country.

The AQAP, seen by the United States as the global terror network's most dangerous branch, has exploited years of deadly conflict between Yemen's government and Houthi rebels to expand its presence in the war-ravaged Arab country.