Yemen drone strike deaths

US drones were reported to have fired "several missiles" into a camp run by al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula on Sunday, as part of a weekend campaign against the group.

"More than 30 members of al Qaeda were killed and many others wounded," said a tribal chief, which said the attack had taken place near al-Mahfad town in the Wadi Ghadina region.

A statement published on a Yemeni Defense Ministry website said the attack on al Qaeda training camps had killed "several" militants of various nationalities, although it did not give a precise number.

A day earlier, a strike in Yemen's central province of Baida killed 10 militants, according to the official Saba news agency. The agency also said three civilians had died in that attack.

The targeting of suspects came less than a week after AQAP leader Nasser al-Wuhayshi pledged that the group would fight Western "crusaders across the world."

"We will continue to raise the banner of Islam in the Arabian Peninsula and our war against the crusaders will continue everywhere in the world," he said in a video that was posted online.

The targeting of groups with drones has been criticized by human rights groups, particularly following reports of civilian casualties. However, the use of the drones in Yemen - reported to be the exclusive preserve of the US - has been defended by President Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi.

rc/ (AFP, Reuters)