Coordinated Explosions in Yemen Leave 38 Dead

Yemeni security and hospital officials say that on Monday, at least 38 people were killed in three coordinated explosions against government forces in the coastal city of Mukalla in southern Yemen. According to Reuters, at least 24 others were injured in these explosions, which occurred in the evening during iftar. The news network 'Amaq' reported that the Islamic State group claimed responsibility for these explosions. Reports indicate that the first explosion was a suicide bombing near a checkpoint in the west of Mukalla. Then, a car bomb exploded near the military information office of government forces. The third explosion was a homemade bomb that detonated during iftar for the soldiers. Mukalla, the capital of Hadramaut province, was initially captured by a group known as 'Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula' last year, but forces loyal to President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, supported by the Saudi-led Arab coalition, retook the city in late April. The Islamic State group killed at least 40 government soldiers in a suicide bombing on May 23 of this year. Due to the civil war in Yemen, Islamist militants have been able to seize areas in the country. Currently, Houthi Shiite militants and supporters of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh control Sana'a, the capital of Yemen. The Saudi-led Arab coalition, which has intervened in the Yemeni civil war on behalf of forces loyal to Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, has so far been unable to expel the Houthi militants from Sana'a.