US officials say military drone 'shot down over Yemen'

A US military drone has been shot down over Yemen, according to a report.

US officials quoted by Reuters say the MQ-9 drone was shot down over the country's Dhamar governate, a region situated southeast of the Houthi-controlled capital Sanaa, late on Tuesday.

A military spokesman for the Houthi rebels had earlier claimed that air defences had brought down a drone belonging to the US.

According to one official, it was believed the drone had been shot down by a surface-to-air missile, while another said it was too early to say who was responsible.

This marked the most recent instance of a US-operated drone being downed over Yemen, where it occasionally carries out strikes on al Qaeda insurgents in the region, known as al Qaeda in the Arabia Peninsula (AQAP).

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