President says Yemen in 'open war' with al-Qaida

Yemeni President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi says his country is an "open war" with al-Qaida as one of the country's largest offensive against the terror group in south has been pushing militants out of their strongholds.

Hadi made the remarks in a statement aired on state television today.

He said that the military will expand its operations to include areas other than Shabwa and Abyan, the southern provinces which witnessed a strong al-Qaida presence before the offensive, to include others like Baida and Marib Yemen's military continues to battle militants taking shelter inside schools and government buildings in the one-time al-Qaida stronghold of Azzan in Shabwa.
 

The battles came after a day of fierce clashes in the same town forced families to flee.