Missiles fired at hotel used by Yemeni government

Missiles have been fired at a hotel used by the Yemeni government, including the vice president and prime minister, and at a compound housing Gulf Arab troops.

Smoke rises following an explosion that hit Hotel al-Qasr where Cabinet members and other government officials are staying, in the southern port city of Aden, Yemen. (AAP) Source: AAP

Unidentified assailants fired missiles at a hotel in Aden used by Yemeni government officials and at a compound housing troops of the government's Gulf Arab allies on Tuesday, residents said.

The residents said they had unconfirmed reports that about 10 people were killed or wounded. Yemeni Vice President and Prime Minister Khaled Bahah and other officials were unhurt, officials said. President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi is believed to be in Saudi Arabia.

Initial reports said the missiles were rocket-propelled grenades. Video footage posted on Twitter purporting to show the incident showed a large sheet of flame enveloping the front of the Qasr hotel, followed by an expanding plume of dark smoke.

The missile apparently were fired at the gate of the hotel, residents said. A second missile landed nearby and a third hit a compound in Aden's Buraiqah district where Gulf Arab troops are housed, residents said.

The United Arab Emirates condemned the attack and suggested it was carried out by Houthi rebels and their main local ally, former president Ali Abdullah Saleh.

UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash said in a Twitter message the attack on the hotel was further proof that the Houthis and Saleh were determined to destroy Yemen.

"The situation on the ground shows that they are waging a losing battle and that their role has been diminished to retreating on the ground and to try to inflict damage with mines, ambushes and rockets," he said in another message.

A local newspaper, Aden al-Ghad, reported on its website that Bahah said after the attack he was determined to stay in the city.

The Qasr hotel has been the base of Hadi's government since its gradual return from exile in Riyadh over recent weeks, after Houthi fighters were expelled in July.

The hotel has been guarded by troops from the United Arab Emirates, one of the members of a Saudi-led coalition that has been fighting since March to end Houthi control of Yemen and restore Hadi to power in the capital, Sanaa.