Zee Media Bureau/Supriya Jha and Himanshu Kapoor
Sanaa: Yemen`s Higher Security Committee on Thursday said that at least 52 doctors and nurses were killed in the deadly attacks on Yemen`s Defence Ministry here.
A suicide bomber rammed his explosives-laden car into the entrance gate of Yemen Defence Ministry on Thursday after which militants in military uniform barged in the compound triggering off a gunbattle.
The attack that took place shortly after the working hours started in the ministry, as reported by a news agency, killed twenty people and wounded more than 70 others.
According to the BBC, the situation has been tamed now and "most" of the gunmen were killed, said an official, however it was not yet clear that how many gunmen were involved.
Shortly after the explosion, gunshots were heard which was triggered by the militants who followed in another car after the suicide bomb car exploded at the gate.
One of the eyewitnesses told a news agency that the explosions were loud and violent and heard hundreds of metres away.
Several army vans rushed to the site and the area has now been cordoned off.
The BBC report said that the militants had attacked a hospital too, which was badly damaged.
No one has so far claimed responsibility for the attack, but the attack had the hallmarks of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), added the report.
With frequent militant attacks on officials and rampant violence, Yemen is struggling to retain law and order since 2011 when President Ali Abdullah Saleh was ousted.
