SANAA (Sputnik) — The al-Qaeda insurgents in Yemen on Thursday seized the international Riyan Airport, air defense headquarters and an oil terminal in the country's southeastern port city of Mukalla, a local source told Sputnik.
To date, the entire coastal line in the east of Mukalla, has fallen into the hands of the militants, according to local media.
A terrorist unit known as al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) has currently been expanding its influence in the south of Yemen, taking advantage of the political crisis in the country.
Yemen is suffering from a military confrontation between government forces and Houthi rebels that recently took the capital Sanaa and several other cities under control. In late March, a Saudi-led international coalition began bombing Houthi positions in Yemen, following a request for military assistance from Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi.
