Al-Qaeda attack in Yemen kills 2 security guards

A Yemeni military official says suspected al-Qaeda militants have killed two security guards and wounded four others in a drive-by shooting in a southern province.

The official says two attackers on a motorcycle opened fire on Tuesday at soldiers guarding a checkpoint in front of a security base in the southern province of Lahj.

The official says the gunmen fled after the attack. He spoke on condition of anonymity according to regulations.

Yemen is fighting a war against al-Qaeda’s local branch, considered by Washington as one of the world’s most dangerous offshoots of the terror network.

The branch, also known as the al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, has carried out several drive-by shootings and suicide attacks targeting security and military officials, as well as checkpoints.