At least 20 people were killed in a car bomb and gun battle at Yemen's defense ministry compound in the capital Sana’a.The defense ministry said the attack targeted the ministry’s hospital and most of the gunmen had been killed or injured. In a statement on its website, the Yemeni military said, “The attackers have exploited some construction work there to carry out this criminal act ... the situation is under control."
Witnesses said the explosion ripped through the compound in the old district of Sana’a, where the country’s central bank is located. A defense ministry source said, “The attack took place shortly after working hours started at the ministry, when a suicide bomber drove a car into the gate.
An employee who works in a nearby building said, “The explosion was very violent, the whole place shook because of it and plumes of smoke rose from the building."
Ambulance sirens and gunshots were heard after the explosion as soldiers exchanged fire with the gunmen, said to have been disguised in Yemeni army uniforms, who had stormed the compound. A military source said that at least 20 people, including
At least two sources inside the defense ministry said the assailants arrived in two vehicles. One was driven by a suicide bomber who attacked the gate of the compound, while armed men entered the compound in the second.