Yemeni intelligence officer gunned down

A Yemeni military intelligence colonel was gunned down by suspected Al Qaeda gunmen in the southeastern province of Hadramout Thursday afternoon, a government official said.

"Two armed men riding a motorbike opened fire from automatic rifles at Colonel Salmin al-Obthani, killing him on his way back home in the coastal city of Mukalla, Hadramout's provincial capital," the government source told Xinhua.

No group has claimed responsibility for the killing Thursday, but militants of the Yemen-based Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) have been blamed for many assassinations and armed attacks in the past.

The Yemeni military and security forces, with US support, have recently intensified operations against suspected Al Qaeda strongholds throughout the country, killing many non-Yemeni Al Qaeda suspects, and prompting retaliatory attacks by the AQAP.

Last week, scores of suspected Al Qaeda gunmen launched more than six attacks, including shootings, bombings, and arson, leaving 31 people dead and several others injured in Hadramout province.