ADEN - Yemen's Defence Ministry said the military had killed 21 al-Qaida "terrorists" on Saturday in the southern Abyan province, whose capital, Zinjibar was seized by Islamist militants last month.

In a statement sent by text message, the ministry said Yemeni forces killed 18 al-Qaida members in Zinjibar, and three in another city in the province, Lawdar. Army troops also destroyed a weapons and ammunition cache in Zinjibar, it said.