ADEN - Two mid-level al Qaeda leaders were killed in Yemen on Thursday in a remote province where al Qaeda is active, the news service of the Yemeni defence ministry said, and residents said they saw a drone in the air at the time.

The defence ministry identified the men as two brothers, Musa'id and Abdullah Mubarak, and said they were killed in Shabwa. Some residents said they saw a drone in the air while others reported an explosion following what they thought was a rocket in the air.