Al-Qaeda took control of a seaport in Abyan province where militants consolidated control over some cities in the past days, a local official said on Thursday.

The Maqateen seaport is an old harbor located in east coastal city of Shoqra.

Many people were killed and injured this week in the clashes between the army and armed Islamists who took over Abyan's capital Zunjbar last week and on Wednesday announced Azzan city in Shabwa as an Islamic emirate.

Thousands of families have fled the province as airstrikes and battles against militants continued over the last few days.

Meantime, the Air Force fighters are bombing a position of Al-Qaeda near Al-Wadhe'a district in an attempt to block terrorist supplies and reinforcements coming from Aden and Lahj provinces.

Separately, clashes erupted today between gunmen and the republican guard in Taiz province after the security forces dispersed a massive demonstration.

No details were revealed about the confrontations that came after removing the month-long sit square in down Taiz by the security forces and scattering the hundreds of thousands of the antigovernment protesters.

Dozens were killed and more than a thousand injured when the forces broke into the square, burned tents and fired live bullets on the protesters demanding an immediate ouster of the regime.

In Sana'a, thousands of tribesmen were said to have been blocked from entering the capital.

The tribesmen are believe to be supporters of Sadeq Al-Ahmer, the sheikh of the most powerful tribal coalition in the country, Hashid, and whose supporters have been fighting the army in downtown the Secretariat Capital.