Six Al-Qaeda suspects killed in US drone strike in Yemen
US Defence Secretary has vowed that Washington will keep up its battle against the group.
TAEZ, Yemen (AFP) - Six suspected Al-Qaeda militants were killed in an apparent US drone strike on the Yemeni port city of Mukalla which the extremists overran earlier this month, witnesses said on Wednesday.
The overnight strike hit a vehicle parked near the presidential palace in Mukalla, capital of Hadramawt province.
The United States, whose intelligence agencies consider the Yemen-based Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) to be the most dangerous branch of the extremist network, is the only country that operates drones over the war-torn country.
On April 14, AQAP announced the death of one of its ideological leaders, Ibrahim al-Rubaish, in a similar drone strike in Hadramawt.
Al-Qaeda has exploited fighting between rebels and beleaguered government forces backed by a Saudi-led coalition to consolidate its grip on the southeastern province.
US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter has acknowledged that Al-Qaeda is gaining ground but has vowed that Washington will keep up its battle against the group.
