Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh said the mortar attack near the US embassy in Sana'a that killed a Yemeni guard Tuesday was a "terrorist" act and offered rewards for information on it, the state news agency reported. ( dpa )
The agency said Saleh announced "a generous reward offer for anybody helps catch the terrorists or provide information lead to their arrest."
A Yemeni guard patrolling the back fence of the embassy was immediately killed and three of his colleagues injured, a police official at the scene said.
Thirteen female students were also injured in the attack, with three in critical condition, according to medical sources.
The agency said Saleh "expressed his strong condemnation of this hideous terrorist act."
He made the remarks during a visit to the injured schoolgirls and security guards at the military hospital, the agency said. It did not specify the reward's amount.
In Washington, US State Department deputy spokesman Tom Casey told reporters the embassy had shut down for the day and would remain closed to the public on Wednesday. He extended condolences to the victims and their families.
"Nothing justifies the use of this kind of violence, certainly in a civilian area and against innocent people," he said, adding he could not confirm the embassy was the target. The US would investigate the incident with Yemeni authorities, he said.
The embassy had said in an earlier statement that three mortar rounds exploded in the vicinity of its compound at around 12:40 pm (0940 GMT). It said none of its personnel were injured.
The shells exploded in the courtyard of a girl's public school which is adjacent to the embassy's compound in Saawan neighbourhood in eastern Sana'a.
A Yemeni guard patrolling the back fence of the embassy was immediately killed and three of his colleagues injured, a police official at the scene said.
In a separate attack, at least five soldiers were injured after a bomb went off at local government compound in the southern province of Abyan, municipal officials said. The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Islamic militants could be behind the attack.
They said the explosion took place early in the morning at the local council's building in Jaar city, some 600 kilometres south of the capital Sana'a, and that the building was empty at the time.