A governor in Yemen was killed by a car bomb Sunday claimed by Islamic State.
The governor, General Jaafar Mohammed Saad, and six of his aides were killed in the violence. Saad was governor of Aden.
The governor was killed on his way to his office Sunday. Reuters reported that a suicide bomber crashed a car bomb into his vehicle.
Islamic State militants wrote on the Internet that a parked, bomb-filled vehicle exploded while Saad's van rode past.
Several other residents were injured in the attack.
Saad was named Aden governor in October.
Islamic State has increased its attacks in Yemen since the outbreak of civil war there this year. Aden was recaptured by government troops, but Islamic State promised more attacks against "the heads of apostasy in Yemen."
As defined by radical Islamists, apostasy is when a Muslim turns his or her back on Islam. The terrorist group Islamic State considers it a crime as well as a sin.
To counter the terrorism in the region, the United States has operated 15 drone airstrikes in Yemen in 2015 and killed 76 Islamic State militants on the Arabian peninsula this year.
Aden is a southern seaport at the eastern entrance to the Red Sea. Close to 800,000 people live in the city.
Jim Dresbach wrote this story for VOA Learning English. Kathleen Struck was the editor.
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Words in This Story
apostasy – n. someone whose beliefs have changed and who no longer belongs to a religious or political group
drone – n. an unmanned aircraft or ship that can navigate without human control or beyond line of sight
