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Five Yemeni soldiers, 20 militants killed in clashes in Abyan - source

SANAA, June 19 (KUNA) -- Five Yemeni soldiers and 20 extremist militants were killed in clashes that have been ongoing for two days in southern Yemen, a military source said Saturday.
Army forces and outlawed militants of so-called Ansar Al-Sharee'a have been fighting in the areas of Dofas and Al-Kod at the outskirts of Zenjibar, capital city of Abyan, the source from the southern Governorate said in press statements.
He said the clashes have been ongoing for two days now, also resulted in destruction of a tank and an armored vehicle.
Yemeni airforce bombarded suspected Al-Qaeda positions in Al-Kod and other hideouts in Zenjibar, he said.
Meanwhile, unknown people have sabotaged power grids between the Governorates of Maareb and Sanaa, causing electricity blackout in the capital city.
At a humanitarian front, the US Embassy in Sanaa announced arrival of USD 10 million worth of food supplies to assist 416,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs).
An Embassy statement said Yemeni people fled their homes because of the military conflict in the governorate of Saada, northwest of Yemen, between mid-2004 until February 2009.
The US government is joining hands with local and international organizations to provide medical supplies, shelters, water and food for the IDPs, said the statement. (end) az.bs KUNA 192108 Jun 11NNNN