Yemeni security officials say that a U.S. drone strike hit a convoy heading to a wedding party today, Dec. 12, killing at 15 people, including five who died from critical injuries, Reuters reports.
The plane in the strike, which took place in central al-Bayda province, was not identified, though tribal and local media sources said that it was indeed a U.S. drone that had mistaken the car convoy as an Al-Qeada convoy. Calls to the Department of the Defense were not answered immediately.
"An air strike missed its target and hit a wedding car convoy, ten people were killed immediately and another five who were injured died after being admitted to the hospital," one security official said.
As part of the campaign against Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), the U.S. military has recently increased drone strikes across a handful of countries, including Yemen, AQAP's "main stronghold," considered to be one of the group's most active branches in the world.
According a detailed report from the Human Rights Watch published in August, U.S. missile strikes, including armed drone strikes, have killed dozens of Yemeni civilians.
On Monday, at least three people travelling in a car in eastern Yemen were killed by missiles fired from a U.S. drone.
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