At Least 60 soldiers killed in S Yemen al-Qaeda fights

At least 60 soldiers were killed in armed clashes with militants from Yemeni-based al-Qaeda wing in Yemen's southern province of Abyan, Xinhua news agency reported. The government troops, backed by Yemeni tribal fighters, entered fierce battles after al-Qaeda militants attacked on Monday several military barracks of the 111th and 119th Armored Brigades near the town of Lauder in the Abyan province. The agency said citing an unnamed source in the Yemeni government, that during the offensive on Lauder, militants also managed to kill at least five high-ranking military officers. This is the third such offensive on Lauder launched by al-Qaeda militants in the past three months, the agency added. Armed clashes between the government troops and al-Qaeda militants in the south of Yemen began in late May last year after several hundred of militants captured a number of cities in the province of Abyan, including capital Zinjibar.