Three Yemen policemen killed in militant attack

Sanaa, May 7 (IANS) At least three policemen were killed and one wounded when suspected Al Qaeda militants attacked a security checkpoint in Yemen's southern province of Lahj Wednesday, official said.

Some of the militants were also wounded in the exchange of gunfire, Xinhua reported.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but militants of the Yemen-based Al Qaeda offshoot were blamed for a series of assassination attacks in the past, mostly in the country's southern regions.

The government has mounted an assault on Al Qaeda strongholds since last week in the country's southern territories, killing scores of militants.

The Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) in Yemen has vowed to hit back.

The AQAP, known locally as Ansar al-Sharia, had emerged on the Yemen stage in January 2009.