Twin bombings claimed by Daesh terror group targeted the Yemeni army in second city Aden Monday killing at least 45 people, most of them would-be recruits, a military official said.
A suicide bomber killed 34 people queueing to enlist at a recruitment centre near the Badr base in the Khormaksar district, said Brigadier General Nasser al-Sarei, commander of special security forces.
A second explosion inside the base afterwards killed seven soldiers, he said.
In a statement posted online, Daesh said one of its militants detonated an explosives belt among "apostate soldiers" at a recruitment centre, followed by a bomb that exploded at the gate of the Badr base.
Meanwhile, Associated Press reported that the officials said Monday that the two bombers targeted young men seeking to join the army. One suicide car bomber targeted a line outside an army recruitment center, killing at least 20. A second bomber on foot detonated his explosive vest among a group of recruits waiting outside the home of an army commander, killing at least 25.
The Yemeni officials all spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.
Yemen's conflict pits the internationally recognized government against Shiite rebels who control the capital, Saana, and are allied with a former president. The country also contains active al-Qaida and Daesh group affiliates.