A Yemeni soldier stands on a hill overlooking Sanna Yemeni government troops launched a surprise attack in the south of the country to recapture an al-Qaida stronghold, killing 25 Islamist militants, an official said Friday. The official said the army  succeeded in regaining control over one district on the outskirts of Zinjibar, but the rest of the provincial capital was still in al-Qaeda\'s hands. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to reporters.
A defence ministry statement on Friday said the offensive that started two weeks ago around another city in the southern Abyan province, Loder, has so far killed 250 al-Qaeda militants. Also, 37 Yemeni soldiers have died, it said.
\"The war on terrorism will expand and reach all the terrorist elements; it will continue and will not stop until it curbs it and uproots it,\" a statement Friday from Yemen\'s interior ministry said.
Ansar al-Sharia, an al-Qaeda-linked group, confirmed in a statement Friday that its members have \"encountered a massive offensive by Sanaa regime forces, but they have failed\" to retake Zinjibar.
Al-Qaeda is reportedly trying to take control of Loder to establish a base for itself there.
Ansar al-Sharia in turn threatened to execute 73 soldiers held captive by the group since a battle in Dofus early March.
A source close to the organisation said to Arabstoday that the threat was a response to Yemeni authorities ignoring their demands to free Ansar al-Sharia militants in captivity.
The source explained that the disregard of their demands and their apparent indifference towards their own soldiers in captivity would lead them to a drastic response. The source said al-Qaeda would kill a number of Yemeni soldiers held captive by them to emphasise their demands.
The interior ministry said that security forces were able to uncover an al-Qaeda plot of to use six car bombs in suicide attacks on gas installations in the port of Balhaf in Shabwa province.
Meanwhile, Sheikh Abdul Majeed al-Zindani denounced the acts of violence against the Yemeni army in clashes with armed groups.
Zindani, who is accused by the US of being linked to al-Qaeda, called the government to initiate dialogue with the groups on the condition they abandon their arms, saying: “Those who respond to this dialogue and give up arms are welcomed, and those who refuse and insist on using arms then everyone, the government and the people, should take a unified position against them. The state should maintain its safety and stability.”
He said to the Akhbar Al Youm news agency that \"no one may carry arms against the people\". \"It is prohibited for Muslims to kill one another,\" he said.
Yemen slipped into a state of chaos after the outbreak of protests more than a year ago that ousted former president Ali Abdullah Saleh under a deal brokered by Gulf neighbours.
Exploiting weakened central government control, Islamist insurgents have taken control of a number of cities in the territory which is close to key shipping lanes in the Red Sea.
The website said security forces had uncovered an al-Qaeda plot to use six vehicles packed with explosives to launch suicide attacks on gas facilities in Belhaf in the southern Shabwa province.
Yemen\'s oil and gas pipelines have been repeatedly sabotaged, causing disruptions is exports by the small producer.
The government has regularly reported al-Qaeda plots to launch further attacks, but it has not been possible to confirm the reports independently.
France\'s Total gas pipeline to Balhaf was last blown up in March, hours after a US drone attack killed at least five militants.
Yemen\'s new president, Abdrabuh Mansour Hadi, who took office vowing to fight al-Qaeda, is also facing challenges from Shiite Muslim rebels in the north and secessionists in the south.
The government had at least 13 militants linked to al-Qaeda were killed on Thursday in clashes with the army in the south.
Elsewhere in Yemen, demonstrators repeated their long-standing demands against Saleh.
Tens of thousands of Yemenis rallied in the capital, Sanaa, and several other cities demanding trial of Saleh and his family for killing protesters during past year\'s uprising.
\"The people want to prosecute the murderer,\" the protesters chanted, holding up composite pictures showing Saleh behind bars.
Saleh stepped down in February but remains in Yemen. Some charge he is still meddling in state affairs through relatives and cronies in senior positions.