Air Strikes on Yemen Mosque Kill 7 Civilians

Military air strikes on a mosque killed seven civilians Monday in Jaar, an al-Qaida stronghold town in the southern Yemeni province of Abyan, a local official said.

"The Yemeni air force accidentally shelled a mosque in Jaar, killing seven people and wounding five others," the official told Agence France Presse, on condition of anonymity.

"The air force hit the Grand Mosque in Jaar whereas the target was a small mosque held by suspected Al-Qaeda militants," situated near the town's entrance, said the official.

Nearly an hour after the two raids, fighter jets flew over Jaar, 12 kilometers north of Abyan's provincial capital Zinjibar which was seized in May by Partisans of Sharia (Islamic Law), an organization linked to the al-Qaida network.

A medical official in al-Razi hospital in Jaar confirmed the toll.