Two dead, 17 wounded in car bomb attack on Yemen police (2nd Roundup)

Jul 25, 2008, 15:16 GMT

Sana'a, Yemen - A suicide attacker rammed an explosive-laden car into a police compound in south-eastern Yemen Friday, killing himself and a policeman and injuring 17 others including seven women, police and witnesses said.

Eleven policemen and six women were injured in the explosion in Sayoun city of Hadharmout province, 900 kilometres south-east of the capital Sana'a, police officials said.

Hadhramout Governor Ahmed Salem al-Khanbashi said later that police identified the attacker. This would be withheld pending final invistigation.

He said the attacker drove a white sedan on a high speed and tried to force his way into the compound's central yard. The car exploded after a police guard tried to stop it at the entrance of the complex.

'The explosion was strong to the extent that it caused damage to eight houses nearby,' the governor said. Seven women in those houses were wounded.

Witnesses said the explosion left body parts and bloodstained clothing scattered in the compound's yard.

'The attacker turned into charred parts,' a witness told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa by phone from Sayoun.

The al-Qaeda network has carried out several attacks in eastern Yemen, however, no group has claimed responsibility for Friday's car bomb.