</s>Image copyright AP

A suicide bomber has killed at least 48 soldiers and wounded another 84 in the southern Yemeni port city of Aden.

The soldiers were queuing up to receive salaries near al-Sawlaban military base when the attacker struck.

The bomber immersed himself in the crowd of soldiers at the base in al-Arish district, an official said.

So-called Islamic State (IS) said it was behind the attack, similar to one on the same base days ago that killed another 48 soldiers.

In August, a suicide attack in the city claimed by the so-called Islamic State (IS) killed at least 70 people at an army recruiting centre in the city.

Aden is controlled by various factions loyal to the internationally recognised government of President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi. They are battling the Shia Houthi rebels and their allies, who seized Yemen's capital Sanaa in 2014 and later much of north-western Yemen.

IS and al-Qaeda have taken advantage of the conflict to bolster their presence in the south of the country and IS has in recent years attempted to supplant al-Qaeda as the dominant jihadist group there.

Image copyright AFP Image caption The bomb targeted soldiers queuing for their pay

The conflict in Yemen has killed more than 7,000 people, most of them civilians, according to the UN, and exacted a devastating toll on the population.

A Saudi-led air coalition supported by the US and UK has carried out a widespread bombing campaign, and is accused by international observers of targeting residential areas.

The scale of the humanitarian crisis in Yemen is enormous - more than three million people have left their homes and 18.8 million people - 69% of the population - need humanitarian assistance.</s>Yemeni officials say an explosion outside a military camp near the southern city of Yemen has killed at least 23 people.

The officials tell The Associated Press that the explosion Sunday morning is suspected of being the result of a suicide bomber wearing an explosive vest. The officials all spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.

The camp where the explosion took place is the same military base that was struck by another suicide bomber on Dec 10, killing at least 45 soldiers and wounding at least 50.

No group has claimed responsibility for Sunday's attack. However, the Islamic State group's Yemeni affiliate claimed responsibility for the Dec. 10 bombing.</s>SANAA, Yemen -- A suicide bomber blew himself up outside a military camp in the southern Yemeni city of Aden on Sunday morning, killing at least 48 soldiers, a Health Ministry official said. The Islamic State group's Yemen-based affiliate claimed responsibility.

Abdel-Nasr al-Wali, a Health Ministry official based in Aden, told The Associated Press that 84 people were injured in the blast. Security officials said that preliminary investigations showed the blast was the work of a bomber wearing an explosives-laden vest. The attack took place as soldiers lined up to collect their salaries, they said. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.

The IS affliate claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement posted on IS-run Aamaq news agency. It identified the bomber as Abu Hashim al-Radfani and published a photo of him smiling and wearing a white vest as he stood next to the group's black flag. It also posted photos it said were of the blast that killed nearly 70. It was not possible to immediately verify the claim.

The blast took place at the same military base that was also struck by a suicide bomber on Dec. 10, killing 57 soldiers. The IS Yemeni affiliate also claimed responsibility for that attack.

In addition to IS, Yemen is the longtime home to an active branch of al-Qaida, widely regarded as the most dangerous of the international extremist group.

Aden is controlled by a loose coalition of troops loyal to the internationally-recognized government of President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, local militias and jihadi groups. They are battling Shiite rebels, known as Houthis, who seized Yemen's capital, Sanaa, in 2014 and later swept across much of northern Yemen.

The Houthi's advances forced Hadi to flee the country and seek shelter in neighboring Saudi Arabia. A Saudi-led coalition, mostly consisting of Gulf Arab states, subsequently intervened in Yemen in early 2015, launching a punishing air campaign against the rebels and their allies.</s>SANAA, Yemen -- A suspected suicide bomber blew himself up outside a military camp in the southern Yemeni city of Aden on Sunday morning, killing at least 30 soldiers, Yemeni officials said.

The officials told The Associated Press that preliminary investigations showed the blast was the work of a bomber wearing an explosive vest. At least 50 people were injured in the attack that took place as soldiers lined up to collect their salaries, they said. The officials all spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.

The camp where the explosion took place is the same military base that was struck by another suicide bomber on Dec. 10, killing 57 soldiers.

No group has claimed responsibility for Sunday's attack. However, the Islamic State group's Yemeni affiliate claimed responsibility for the Dec. 10 bombing. In addition to IS, Yemen is the longtime home to an active branch of al-Qaida, widely regarded as the most dangerous affiliate of the international extremist group.

Aden is controlled by a loose coalition of troops loyal to the internationally recognized government of President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, local militias and jihadi groups. They are battling Shiite rebels, who seized Yemen's capital, Sanaa, in 2014 and later swept much of northern Yemen.

Their advances forced Hadi to flee the country and seek shelter in neighboring Saudi Arabia. A Saudi-led coalition, mostly consisting of Gulf Arab states, subsequently intervened in Yemen, launching a punishing air campaign against the rebels and their allies.</s>SANAA, Yemen -- An explosion Sunday morning outside a military camp near the southern Yemeni city of Aden has killed at least 23 people, according to Yemeni officials.

The officials tell The Associated Press that the explosion is suspected of being the work of a suicide bomber wearing an explosive vest. The officials all spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.

The camp where the explosion took place is the same military base that was struck by another suicide bomber on Dec. 10, killing at least 45 soldiers and wounding at least 50.

No group has claimed responsibility for Sunday's attack. However, the Islamic State group's Yemeni affiliate claimed responsibility for the Dec. 10 bombing. In addition to IS, Yemen is the longtime home to an active branch of al-Qaida, widely regarded as the most dangerous affiliate of the international extremist group.

Aden is controlled by a loose coalition of troops loyal to the internationally recognized government of President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, local militias and jihadi groups. They are battling Shiite rebels, who seized Yemen's capital, Sanaa, in 2014 and later swept much of northern Yemen.

Their advances forced Hadi to flee the country and seek shelter in neighboring Saudi Arabia. A Saudi-led coalition, mostly consisting of Gulf Arab states, subsequently intervened in Yemen, launching a punishing air campaign against the rebels and their allies.</s>Emergency trucks flooded the area of the attack and streets were closed down by military forces. The injured soldiers were taken to four hospitals in the city.

The suicide bomber attacked Al Solban military base as soldiers were lining up to receive their salaries. The officials told CNN the attacker was able to enter the base dressed as a soldier.

On December 10, at least 48 soldiers were killed in an ISIS attack on the same camp, targeting soldiers queuing up to get their salaries, according to the official news agency Saba.

Aden is the de-facto capital of the UN-recognized and Saudi-backed government of Yemen. The actual capital, Sanaa, has been under the control of Houthi rebels since last year.

Yemen has been wracked by warfare and has become a proxy battleground for Saudi Arabia and Iran. Yemen's minority Houthis, who are Shiite, rebelled last year against the Sunni-led government of President Abdu Rabu Mansour Hadi, backed by Saudi Arabia. That spurred the Saudi-led coalition to launch airstrikes in support of Hadi against rebel targets in Yemen In March of 2015. The United Nations has called the conflict a "humanitarian catastrophe" that has killed about 10,000 people in Yemen and left millions in need of aid. Government forces and the Saudi-led coalition also have fought against the Al Qaeda branch in Yemen (AQAP) and ISIS, both of which are anti-government Sunni terror groups.</s>Islamic State claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing on Sunday that killed up to 49 Yemeni soldiers in the southern port city of Aden, the group said in a statement.

Islamic State said more than 70 "apostates" were killed in the attack carried out by a suicide bomber it identified as Abu Hashem al-Radfani.</s>A suicide bomber killed at least 43 soldiers in the southern Yemeni port city of Aden on Sunday, officials there said, a week after an attack by the militant Islamic State group killed 50 troops nearby.

The officials said the soldiers were queuing to collect salaries near a military base in the Khor Maksar district when the attacker blew himself up. At least 60 other troops were wounded, they said.

Aden is the temporary capital of Yemen’s internationally recognised government in exile in neighbouring Saudi Arabia. The administration has struggled to establish its control in the city as militants have launched dozens of attacks against its forces.

Al Qaeda and Islamic State have exploited nearly two years of war in the impoverished country to carry out assassinations and bombings, mostly in lawless southern Yemeni areas nominally controlled by the government.

Saudi Arabia and its allies in a mostly Gulf Arab military coalition have been bombing Yemen’s dominant Houthi movement in parts of the country under its control since it drove the government from power in March 2015.

They have failed to dislodge the group from the capital, Sanaa.</s>SANAA, Yemen -- A suicide bomber blew himself up outside a military camp in the southern Yemeni city of Aden on Sunday morning, killing at least 52 soldiers, a security official said. The Islamic State extremist group's Yemen-based affiliate claimed responsibility.

Abdel-Rahman al-Naqeeb told The Associated Press that 63 people were also injured in the blast. Security officials said preliminary investigations showed the blast was the work of a bomber wearing an explosives-laden vest. The attack took place as soldiers lined up to collect their salaries, they said. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.

The Islamic State affiliate claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement posted on the Islamic State-run Aamaq news agency. It identified the bomber as Abu Hashim al-Radfani and published a photo of him smiling and wearing a white vest as he stood next to the group's black flag. The affiliate also posted photos it said were of the blast that it claimed killed nearly 70. It was not possible to immediately verify the claim.

Sunday's blast took place at the same military base that was struck by a suicide bomber on Dec. 10, killing 57 soldiers. The Islamic State's Yemeni affiliate also claimed responsibility for that attack.

Aden is controlled by a loose coalition of troops loyal to the internationally-recognized government of President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, local militias and jihadi groups. They are battling Shiite rebels, known as Houthis, who seized Yemen's capital, Sanaa, in 2014 and later swept across much of northern Yemen. Aden serves as the temporary capital for the internationally-recognized government.

The Houthis' advances forced Hadi to flee the country and seek shelter in neighboring Saudi Arabia. A Saudi-led coalition, mostly consisting of Gulf Arab states, subsequently intervened in Yemen in early 2015, launching an air campaign against the Houthis and their allies.

Sunday's bombing came as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry met Saudi King Salman, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef and others to discuss the war in Yemen -- likely Kerry's last visit to the region as America's top diplomat.

"In turbulent times, it's good to have solid friends," Kerry told journalists Sunday night. "That's why the United States' partnership with Saudi Arabia is rightly so valuable."

Kerry earlier joined diplomats from Britain, Oman and the United Arab Emirates to speak with Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, the United Nations special envoy to Yemen.

The United Arab Emirates is part of the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis, while Oman has served as an interlocutor for them.

On Twitter, British Middle East Minister Tobias Ellwood said the meeting discussed a political process to end Yemen's war, something he described as "the only way to bring peace."

Kerry said he hoped to have parties involved "within two weeks" to agree to terms earlier set out by the U.N. But he and Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir offered few specifics on how that would be accomplished, especially as the U.N. has proposed sidelining Hadi and giving the rebels a share of power -- concessions the Saudis strongly oppose.

"You can see from the humanitarian situation, which is dire and deteriorating rapidly, that it is urgent that we try to bring this war to a close," Kerry said. "But we also need to bring it to a close in a way that protects the security of Saudi Arabia."

The U.N. and rights groups estimate at least 9,000 people overall have died in the war, with the U.N. estimating at least 4,125 civilians have been killed since the airstrike campaign began. Saudi-led coalition airstrikes were responsible for 60 percent of the civilian deaths over a yearlong span starting in July last year, according to a U.N. report.

Information for this article was contributed by Abdullah Al-shihri and Jon Gambrell of The Associated Press.
An explosion outside a military camp in southern Yemen kills at least 49 people and injures many more. The explosion is believed to have been caused by a suicide bomber wearing an explosive vest.