Air strikes kill 17 al-Qeada militants

Two air strikes yesterday in south Yemen killed seven al-Qaeda militants, including two top operatives, officials said. Yemeni soldiers, meanwhile, shelled a gathering of al-Qaeda fighters elsewhere in the south, killing 10 militants.

The air strikes hit in the town of Jaar and north-east of Zinjibar, the provincial capital of Abyan, Yemeni security officials said.