Yemeni forces arrest two IS-linked militants in Aden

ADEN, Yemen, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- Two militants linked to the Islamic State (IS) group were arrested during a security operation conducted in the southern port city of Aden early on Sunday morning, a government official told Xinhua.

"The security forces launched a search operation and then raided a building in Aden's neighborhood of Tawahi and managed to capture two dangerous terrorists," the local government official said on condition of anonymity.

Experts of the Criminal Investigation Department started interrogating the captured militants who were in close contact with prominent leaders of the IS group in Yemen, the source said.

A security source confirmed that the captured militants were responsible for recruiting other terrorists to make roadside bombs and Improvised Explosive Device (IED) in order to target the government officials in Aden.

The anti-terror unit of the security forces seized weapons, different kinds explosives and an amount of cash after the pre-dawn operation in Tawahi neighborhood.

Last month, the IS militants detonated a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (SVBIED) and targeted the Ministry of Finance building in KhorMaksar district of Aden.

The Yemen-based affiliate of the IS group has yet to make comments on the security operation in Aden.

The southern port city of Aden is considered as Yemen's temporary capital and the Saudi-backed Yemeni government based itself there since 2015.

During the past two years, the al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and other terrorist groups including the IS had an active presence in Yemen's southern part.

The impoverished Arab country has been locked into a civil war since the Houthi rebels overran much of the country militarily and seized all northern provinces, including the capital Sanaa, in 2014.

Saudi Arabia leads an Arab military coalition that intervened in Yemen in 2015 to support the government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi after Houthi rebels forced him into exile.

The United Nations has listed Yemen as the world's number one humanitarian crisis, with 7 million Yemenis on the brink of famine and cholera causing more than 2,000 deaths. Enditem