Yemeni Soldiers Sanaa – Khalid Haroji At least seven Yemeni soldiers from the central security forces died in an attack on Sunday by gunmen affiliated to al-Qaeda at a checkpoint near the city of Sayoun in the province of Hadramaut in south east of Yemen. The ministers of defence and  the interior attended a parliamentary session  in the morning regarding this latest security development in the country and the reasons behind the army's failure to quell al-Qaeda activity. The defence minister announced that the military committee will work on eliminating all forms of militancy.
Meanwhile, Yemeni security sources in the province of Hadramaut said that armed elements from Ansar al-Sharia (al-Shari'a supporters) affiliated to al-Qaeda in Yemen attacked a military and security checkpoint in al-Juba, close to the historic city of Shibam, with a barrage of heavy bullets and bombs which killed seven soldiers and injury at least two, including one seriously wounded.
The sources added that the attackers who were riding an open-top  four-wheel drive vehicle  attacked the soldiers while they were having breakfast. Following an exchange of fire, the attackers fled.
This attack comes a day after hardline militants stormed a military outpost in the area of al-Harour between Abyan and Lahj in Yemen's south and took control of the outpost after killing and wounding dozens of soldiers.
Defence Minister Maj Gen Mohammed Nasser Ahmed and Interior Minister Abdul-Qader Qahtan,  attended the parliamentary session on Sunday regarding the security development in the country to examine the reasons behind the army's failure to reduce al-Qaeda activity and regain the areas and sites controlled by al-Qaeda as well as the incapability of the military and security committee to achieve the Gulf initiative aimed at ending all forms of militancy in Sanaa and throughout the country's provinces.
While the two ministers refused to disclose the entity responsible for implementing the Gulf initiative and its mechanisms, the Minister of Defence announced to the House of Representatives to expect a surprise saying: "within two weeks you'll see something new from the military committee and if we don't eliminate militancy from the capital, we'll say goodbye"
He blamed the lawlessness in the provinces on the removal of security posts from the capitals of the provinces,  and defections from the armed forces which  hs led to the expansion of the al-Qaeda presence..