Yemen says its security forces have foiled a planned al-Qaida attack in the southern province of Aden.

The state news agency Saba on Monday quoted military officials saying “six of the most dangerous members” of the terrorist network were arrested Sunday.

The Yemeni army has been battling hundreds of Islamist militants affiliated to al-Qaida who have seized control of the southern city of Zinjibar and smaller towns in the province of Abyan.

The report said the arrested militants are all bomb experts and were carrying detonators and wireless communications equipment.

Insurgents have launched several attacks in southern Yemen during the country's political unrest.

Since January, thousands of people across the country have been calling for an end to President Ali Abdullah Saleh's autocratic rule.

Mr. Saleh is recovering in Saudi Arabia from injuries sustained in a recent bomb attack on the presidential compound, as various factions, including Islamist militants, vie for power throughout the country.