SANA, Yemen — A U.S. drone airstrike on a car east of Yemen’s capital, Sana, on Monday killed two suspected al-Qaida militants and wounded three others, two of them seriously, according to security officials.
The airstrike was the third to target al-Qaida militants in the same area since Saturday, evidence of an uptick in the U.S. military effort against the terror organization in Yemen. On Saturday, two U.S. drone strikes killed eight people, including two known al-Qaida militants, in Marib province.
The security officials said the five targeted Monday were traveling in a pickup when it was hit in Marib. The three wounded were traveling in the vehicle’s back bed, according to the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.
The two killed were identified as Ali Saleh Toaiman and Qassim Nasser Toaiman. Members of the same clan, both men were among several hundred suspected al-Qaida militants freed by authorities in April last year after several months in detention, according to the officials.
The two are thought to have fought government forces in the southern Abyan province, where al-Qaida militants gained a foothold before they were driven out last year.