Khaled Abdullah / Reuters

A man sits in front of an army tank damaged during recent fighting between the army and al-Qaida-linked militants in the southern Yemeni city of Zinjibar June 18.

Khaled Abdullah / Reuters

An army soldier looks at buildings destroyed during fighting between the army and al-Qaida-linked militants in the southern Yemeni city of Zinjibar June 18.

The Yemeni military last week said it had driven Islamist fighters from territory they had held for over a year, including Zinjibar, capital of Abyan province, and another city, Jaar.  For the last several weeks Yemen has been fighting to retake towns in the southern province that were seized by militants linked to al-Qaida last year during a the uprising against President Ali Abdullah Saleh.

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