SANAA, Yemen, Aug. 24 (UPI) -- A top al-Qaida commander was killed in fighting between militants and government forces in southern Yemen, authorities said Tuesday.
Government forces cracked down on al-Qaida militants during the weekend after insurgents refused to surrender to authorities in Abyan province.
Security forces surrounded fighters with al-Qaida who were holed up in the city of Lawdar. Seven insurgents were killed after al-Qaida fighters rejected an ultimatum to surrender.
Authorities claimed they killed 27-year-old Adel Saleh Hardaba in Lawdar, who was described by authorities as the second-in-command of al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, al-Jazeera reports.
Nearly a dozen Yemeni soldiers and at least 19 militants were killed in fighting that erupted during the weekend.
Yemeni authorities had distributed fliers during the weekend warning residents to flee south Yemen. Government sources said at least 80,000 civilians have left the area as security forces surround Lawdar.
AQAP is connected to several terrorist plots in the United States. Its top cleric, Anwar al-Awlaki, is wanted by Washington dead or alive.
