ADEN • The governor of Aden was killed in a car bomb attack yesterday claimed by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) group in Yemen's southern port city, where President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi has returned to oversee a war against Iran-allied Houthis.
A local official and residents said at least six members of General Jaafar Mohammed Saad's entourage also died in the attack, which targeted the governor as he was headed to work. Several other people were wounded.
ISIS, in a statement posted on a messaging service it uses, said it detonated a car laden with explosives aimed at Gen Saad's convoy in Aden's Tawahi district and promised more operations against "the heads of apostasy in Yemen".
Gen Saad was only recently appointed governor and was known to be close to President Hadi, who returned to Aden last month after several months in exile in Riyadh.
Pro-Hadi forces, aided by a Saudi-led coalition, have battled Iran-backed rebels in Yemen since March after the insurgents overran the capital Sanaa and advanced south, forcing the government to flee to Saudi Arabia.
The battle has plunged the country into chaos, with militant groups exploiting the violence to make sweeping gains, particularly in the southern regions.
REUTERS, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE