Sanaa, Aug 2 (IANS): Unidentified gunmen ambushed the motorcade of a senior security official in Yemen's southern province of Abyan, resulting in the killing of two bodyguards, a government official said.

"The soldiers of the convoy clashed with the assailants during the ambush on the outskirts of Zinjibar, capital of Abyan, and managed to rescue the security leader," the official told Xinhua news agency following the incident on Sunday.

Two bodyguards were killed and a number of soldiers were injured during the confrontation with the assailants who fled the area following the attack, he added.

The targeted official was said to be heading a number of security units linked to the Southern Transitional Council (STC) and began a campaign against terror elements in the area during the past days, according to sources.

Sporadic armed attacks are targeting the military checkpoints of the newly-recruited southern forces stationed in Abyan.

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

The AQAP, seen by the US as the global terror network's most dangerous branch, has exploited years of deadly conflict between the Yemeni government and Houthi rebels to expand its presence in the war-ravaged Arab country.