Car Bombing in Yemen’s Capital Kills at Least 2

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/21/world/middleeast/car-bombing-in-yemens-capital-kills-at-least-2.html

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SANA, Yemen — A car bomb exploded on Saturday outside a mosque in Sana, the Yemeni capital, killing at least two people and wounding six as the country’s civil war raged on, the authorities said. The Islamic State’s Yemeni affiliate claimed responsibility for the attack.

The bomb targeted the Qabat al-Mahdi mosque in Sana’s Old City, where Shiite rebels known as Houthis and others pray, security officials said.

The Islamic State branch claimed responsibility on a Twitter account associated with the extremists, also known as ISIS or ISIL, saying the bombing was directed at the Houthis, whom the Sunni militants view as heretics.

The security officials who gave the casualty figure spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief journalists.

It was the second attack in Sana claimed by the Islamic State affiliate in Yemen in the past week. On Wednesday, a series of bombings in the capital killed at least 30 people and wounded 60.

In March, just before a Saudi-led coalition began its airstrike campaign against the Houthis, a series of suicide bombings in Sana targeting Shiites killed more than 130 people and wounded 345. American officials initially expressed skepticism that such an affiliate existed, as Yemen is also home to a dangerous Qaeda offshoot, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.

The Houthis seized control of Sana in September and have continued their advance across the country despite the airstrikes, which began March 26. Yemen’s conflict pits the Houthis and their allies against an array of forces, including southern separatists, local and tribal militias, Sunni Islamic militants and loyalists of the exiled president, Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi.

Mr. Hadi’s government in exile and the Houthis failed to come to terms on even a temporary truce on Friday, as talks in Geneva brokered by the United Nations ended without an agreement.

Saudi-led airstrikes continued Saturday, hitting Sana International Airport and a nearby air force base. Warplanes also hit targets in Aden, Lahj, Jawf and Saada, security officials said.