New ISIL affiliate claims deadly Yemen attacks

A new Islamic State affiliate claimed responsibility for a series of blasts in Yemen on Tuesday that killed at least 15 members of a Saudi-led coalition fighting rebels in the country.

A statement on Twitter accounts close to the militants said four suicide bombers targeted Saudi, Emirati and Yemeni troops in the southern port city of Aden, the Associated Press reported.

The statement said a militant named Abu Saad al-Adani first attacked driving a truck bomb before suicide bomber Abu Mohammed al-Sahli targeted the al-Qasr hotel, used as a base by Yemen's Prime Minister Khaled Bahah and his cabinet, killing those inside, according to the AP.

It added that another two bombers attacked an administrative headquarters of the United Arab Emirates' military. The UAE is part of the coalition targeting the rebels, known as Houthis. UAE authorities said four of its soldiers were killed.

Government officials said Bahah was not hurt in the attack at the al-Qasr hotel, Al Jazeera reported.

Yemen's internationally recognized President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi fled Aden for Saudi Arabia in March as the Houthis and their allies advanced on the city. In July, the rebels were driven out of Aden by government forces and militias loyal to them. Hadi, who returned to Aden last month, is not reported to be staying at the hotel, the BBC said.

The UAE's WAM news agency initially said the attacks were launched by the Houthis and their allies — forces loyal to ousted president Ali Abdullah Saleh, who was deposed following the Arab Spring of 2011. The Houthis, who remain in control of large sections of the country, have not commented on the attacks.