Three security personnel of the Yemeni government forces were killed and several others injured in a roadside bomb blast in the southern province of Abyan on Wednesday, a security official told Xinhua.

The local security source who preferred to be unnamed said that a roadside bomb struck a security vehicle in Mahfed town of Abyan province, leaving three soldiers killed and several others wounded at the scene.

He said that the deadly incident targeted the newly-recruited Yemeni troops backed by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) while conducting a routine patrol in the area.

Without providing more details, the Abyan-based official said that additional security forces arrived in the area just a few hours following the incident.

He blamed members linked to terrorist organizations, referring to the militants of Yemen-based al-Qaida branch, for the attack.

The Yemen-based al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) network mostly operating in eastern and southern provinces, has been responsible for many high-profile attacks against security forces in the country.

Provinces of Abyan and Shabwa, former main strongholds of AQAP, have been also the scene of sporadic attacks or heavy clashes between UAE-backed security forces and al-Qaida militants from time to time.

The AQAP, seen by the United States as the global terror network's most dangerous branch, has exploited years of deadly conflict between Yemen's government and Houthi rebels to expand its presence, especially in southeastern provinces.

AFP.