Rival forces battle over Yemeni city of Aden

Forces loyal to Yemen's former president stormed the international airport in the southern port city of Aden on Thursday, triggering an intense gun battle with the forces of the current president that intensified a months-long struggle for power threatening to fragment the nation.

The fighting spread into clashes between the two sides around Aden, Yemen's second most important city and economic hub. Amid the violence, warplanes fired three airstrikes at the palace of embattled President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, located on a rocky hill overlooking the Arabian Sea. The strikes caused no damage and Hadi was not present at the time, official said.

The assault in Aden was the latest against Yemen's internationally backed president, who was driven out of the capital, Sanaa, after a takeover by Shia rebels known as Houthis. Hadi and his allies fled to Aden, which they have made their de facto capital, while the rebels have solidified their hold in the north.

The attack on the airport, which was eventually fended off, was led by forces loyal to Ali Abdullah Saleh, the longtime autocratic president who was ousted from power by a 2011 popular uprising. Saleh has allied with the Houthis against Hadi, and his loyalists still command parts of the military and police. The attempt to capture Aden's airport and target the presidential palace appeared to be aimed at isolating the city and weakening Hadi's hold.

Tensions have been building for days in Aden. Hadi's loyalists, in the military and police and in militias known as Popular Committees, dominate the city. But two army units in the city are loyal to Saleh, as is a force of 3,000 police special forces under a pro-Saleh commander, Brig. Gen. Abdul-Hafez al-Saqqaf. In a bid to strengthen his hold in Aden, Hadi tried unsuccessfully to remove Saqqaf from his post earlier this month, prompting some clashes.

The fighting started in the early hours Thursday when a unit of Saqqaf's special forces stormed the airport grounds, sparking heavy battles with pro-Hadi forces. Machine gunfire rang out and explosions shook the terminal building.

At least two shells hit the airport's grounds, said security and aviation officials at the scene. Three of Saleh's loyalists were killed and 10 were captured in the clashes, according to security and medical officials.

During more than four hours of fighting, a convoy of tanks and armored vehicles, led by Hadi loyalist Defense Minister Maj. Gen. Mahmoud al-Subaihi, arrived from downtown Aden to reinforce the airport's defenders. Subaihi's troops then ordered passengers out of the terminal and the airport building, through the thick of the clashes.

Subaihi's troops succeeded in taking back control of the airport. They then turned to the adjacent base of the pro-Saleh police commandos, surrounding it and pounding it with artillery, before storming it in the afternoon, officials said.

After Saqqaf surrendered, militiamen and civilians overran the base, looting weapons and equipment.

The takeover of the base appeared to have prompted the airstrikes as retaliation. One or two warplanes flew over the city and fired three strikes at the palace, but did not damage it, an aide of Hadi told the AP. Anti-aircraft fire drove off the planes.

The planes were apparently flown by loyalists of Saleh or the Houthis. In and around Sanaa in the north, the Shia rebels have control of multiple military and air force bases and have installed loyalists in command positions, including as head of the airport.

During the day sporadic clashes also erupted throughout Aden between Saleh and Hadi loyalists. Sounds of explosions periodically shook the city, and streets were largely deserted as residents hid in homes. By late afternoon, fighting calmed and male residents began to re-emerge on the streets.

Yemen, the Arab world's poorest nation, is deeply polarized and engulfed in turmoil that threatens to split the country amid the power grab by Houthis.

In January, the rebels declared themselves the country's rulers, ordered disbandment of the parliament and formation of a presidential council in addition to a new legislative body. Hadi insists he remains the country's legitimate leader and enjoys much international support as well as backing in the south, including Aden, where he and Sabaihi fled after several weeks under house arrest in Sanaa.

Meanwhile, Yemen's Al-Qaeda branch, considered by Washington the terror network's most dangerous offshoot, has profited from the turmoil and has been stepping up attacks on Yemeni forces and also the Shia rebels.

The group claimed responsibility for the assassination of a prominent Houthi supporter and politician, Abdel-Karim al-Khewani, who was gunned down in front of his house in Sanaa on Wednesday.

The Associated Press