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Yemen crisis: Air raid on president's Aden compound Yemen crisis: Air raid on president's palace in Aden
(35 minutes later)
Warplanes have targeted the compound used by Yemen's President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi in the southern port city of Aden, officials and witnesses say. Warplanes have targeted the palace used by Yemen's President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi in the southern city of Aden.
The officials said anti-aircraft guns returned fire and forced the planes to retreat. Smoke was seen rising from the compound afterwards. Officials said anti-aircraft guns prevented any direct hits on the hilltop compound. But witnesses saw smoke rising from the area afterwards.
There are conflicting reports about whether the president was inside. It is not clear if Mr Hadi was inside, but aides said he was now safe.
The aircraft are believed to have been flown by forces loyal to the Houthi rebels who control the capital Sanaa. Earlier, there were clashes at Aden's airport between troops and militiamen loyal to Mr Hadi and those backing his predecessor and the Houthi rebels.
Earlier, at least five people were killed in intense fighting around Aden's international airport. At least five people were killed as the president's forces repelled an assault, which forced the airport's temporary closure.
Forces allied to Mr Hadi clashed with troops backing the Houthis and former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, after they launched an assault. Aden has been the president's base since he fled the Sanaa last month, after being placed under effective house arrest by the rebels when they took full control of the capital in January and declared that a five-member "presidential council" would rule the country.
Aden has been the president's base since he fled Sanaa last month, after being placed under effective house arrest by the rebels in January. 'Under control'
The Houthis are taking the battle to President Hadi in Aden in order to prevent him from consolidating his new power base there, Arab affairs editor Sebastian Usher says. The deputy editor of the al-Ayam newspaper in Aden, Bashraheel Bashraheel, told the BBC that he heard fighter jets flying over the city at about 15:30 local time (12:30 GMT).
The Houthis have taken over predominantly Sunni parts of central and western Yemen in recent months, sparking battles with tribesmen and al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), after advancing from their stronghold in the far north and entering Sanaa in September. "Then we heard a loud bang and anti-aircraft guns firing from the presidential palace," he added. "Some witnesses who live within a few hundred metres of the palace saw smoke coming out of the buildings."
Officials said the warplanes fired at the compound but missed the palace, hitting a nearby hillside. No damaged was caused and no-one was believed to have been hurt, they added.
A security source told the Reuters news agency that the situation "was under control and there was nothing to be worried about".
It was not immediately clear if the president was inside the palace at the time of the attack.
One of Mr Hadi's aides told the Associated Press that he had not been there, but another was quoted by the AFP news agency as saying that the president had now been "evacuated to a safe place".
The officials said the planes were flown by pilots allied to the Houthis and former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who handed over power to Mr Hadi in 2011 after mass protests against his rule.
Sky News Arabia reported that the planes had taken off from al-Dulaimi air base in Sanaa.
Correspondents say the air raid on the compound and the fighting at the airport suggest the Houthis and Mr Saleh's supporters are taking the battle to President Hadi in Aden in order to prevent him from consolidating his new power base in the south.