Yemen: Army and popular committees retake last militant-held town of Shuqra in south
Yemen’s army early on Friday retook control of the coastal town of Shuqra in the southern Abyan province, to where Al-Qaida militants sheltered after the fall of their last strongholds the capital Zinjibar and the strategic city of Jaar few days ago, military sources said.
The forces launched fierce battles against the remaining militants in Shuqra amid widespread operations targeting them in Abyan and nearby provinces of Shabwa and Hadramout.
With the fall of this town, which has been used as a sea route for supplies and infiltration of Somali militants since Al-Qaida seized key towns in the south in mid-2011, the army now controls all parts in Abyan.
The army and popular committees entered Shuqra from the southwestern part and fierce battles took place on its edges, the sources said.