SANAA—A suicide car bomber killed three policemen and injured seven at a checkpoint in the port city of Aden on the Arabian Sea Saturday, a Yemeni security official said.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media, said gunmen firing their weapons drove through the checkpoint after the bombing on the road linking Aden to Zinjibar. Zinjibar, the provincial capital of Abyan, has fallen under the control of Islamic militants affiliated with al-Qaeda.
Earlier Saturday, Yemeni military and medical officials said three soldiers and 12 militants were killed during clashes between Islamists and army units advancing on Zinjibar. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.
Militants have seized a number of cities in southern Yemen, taking advantage of political turmoil that erupted in February with mass protests against longtime President Ali Abdullah Saleh.