A suicide bomber has killed at least 30 Yemeni soldiers at a military base in the southern port city of Aden, a week after an attack by a local affiliate of ISIL killed dozens of troops in the city.
Military officials and medics told the AFP news agency early on Sunday that the suicide bomber detonated his explosives as a group of soldiers were gathering to collect their salaries at the al-Solban base in the city’s northeast.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, which happened just eight days after a similar bombing claimed by ISIL killed 48 soldiers and wounded 29 others.
The port city, the temporary base of Yemen’s government, has seen a wave of bombings and shootings targeting officials and security forces in recent months.
Armed groups have gained ground in the south of the country since forces loyal to President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi – backed by an Arab coalition assembled by Saudi Arabia – drove the Houthi fighters out of Aden in July last year.
Since then, the government and the Arab coalition have struggled to enforce their control as ISIL and al-Qaeda use the security vacuum to carry out attacks.
At least 10,000 people have been killed in the 20-month conflict, which has prompted a humanitarian crisis in the impoverished country, according to the UN.