Aden (South24) 

At least five people were killed in an explosion targeting the convoy of Aden governor Ahmed Lamlas and a minister in the Yemeni parity government, in Aden, South Yemen, on Sunday afternoon. Both officials survived the attack, and local authorities described the operation as "terrorist" and officials said it was intended to make Aden "unsafe."

Multiple sources told "South24" that the explosion was caused by an explosive car which was parked on the side of a main street in the residential area of Hujaif, located between the districts of Al-Tawahi and Al-Mualla, near a children school.

"The car exploded when the convoy of the governor of Aden, Ahmed Lamlas, was accompanied by the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries in the parity government and the STC Presidency member Salem al-Saqtri," a security source told "South24".

The attack resulted in the death of four, including two soldiers and two other members of the governor's staff, and wounding others.

A source told South24, "An elderly person was also killed in the attack, which terrified the residents and shook the surrounding area."

After the attack, the governor of Aden said, in phone call with Al-Ghad Al-Mushriq news channel, that " the attempt targeted the escorts and this terrorist operation will not deter us from continuing our work."

The Yemeni Prime Minister directed the competent authorities to conduct an urgent investigation into the circumstances of this "cowardly terrorist operation, and to strengthen security vigilance to miss the opportunity for everyone who targets the security and stability of Aden," according to what was published by the official Saba News Agency.

No one has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.

The attack comes a day after the first session of the Yemeni Council of Ministers was held in Aden, yesterday, Saturday, after the return of Prime Minister Maeen Abdulmalik to the governorate.

The attack also came after the Southern security forces managed to eliminate an armed rebellion in the city of Crater last week, leaving dead, wounded and extensive damage.

According to an STC, the attack was aimed primarily at making Aden "unsafe".

The deputy director of the STC media department Mansor Saleh said in an interview with "South24", that "the targeting of the leadership of the STC, including the governor of the capital, Aden, comes in response to the visit of the UN envoy Hans Grunberg, and with the aim of "retaliating for the failure of the Crater plot."

Photo: The governor of Aden next to the Minister of Agriculture, Salem Al-Suqatri and the commander of the security belt forces, Mohsen Al-Wali, after the attack, Sunday, October 10, 2021 (official)

The STC said in a subsequent press statement that "the treacherous terrorist operation is only a result of the safe haven provided by the Muslim Brotherhood [Islah party] to terrorist groups under its umbrella in the service of the Houthi militias to facilitate their recruitment" to South.

According to the STC spokesperson Ali Al-Kathiri, the operation "coincides with the collapse of the fronts in Shabwa and Marib in favor of the Houthi terrorist militia, in a joint and dangerous conspiracy scheme, targeting all of South and the Arab coalition, in addition to targeting the security of the capital, Aden, by trying to break the prestige of preserving the security and security achievements in the capital.

South24 was unable to contact officials in the Islamic Islah Party to respond to these accusations.

According to Mansor, the governor of Aden became the target of a target "after he took a number of measures that angered the Yemeni forces seeking to control Aden".

It should be noted that the governor of Aden is also the Secretary-General of the STC, the main partner in the Yemeni government that resulted in the Riyadh Agreement signed in Saudi Arabia in November 2019.

STC leaders and officials are frequently subjected to similar attacks. AQAP and the Houthis claimed some of these attacks. 

South24 Center for News and Studies

The governor armored car which was subjected to the attack looking charred (Salah Al-Aifari)