Yemeni pro-government security forces man a position man a checkpoint in Ataq city, the capital of the province of Shabwa, east of the Red Sea port of Aden, on Jan 20, 2022. (SALEH Al-OBEIDI / AFP)

ADEN - A total of five people were killed and 15 others injured as a result of a ballistic missile launched by the Houthi militia against Yemen's oil-rich province of Shabwa on Saturday, a security official told Xinhua.

"The Houthi-fired ballistic missile landed on a mosque in Jardan district of Shabwa, causing a huge explosion in the area controlled by the government forces," the local security source said on condition of anonymity.

In January, a large-scale military operation was carried out by the southern Giants Brigades against the Houthis in Shabwa. The military campaign allowed the pro-government forces to fully capture the oil-rich province after days of intense battles

The mosque was partially destroyed by the attack, according to the official.

"The attack occurred when scores of newly-recruited pro-government soldiers were gathering to perform Maghrib prayers inside the mosque in Jardan," he said.

The mosque belongs to the pro-government forces stationed near a large oil field in Shabwa province, the official noted.

In January, a large-scale military operation was carried out by the southern Giants Brigades against the Houthis in Shabwa. The military campaign allowed the pro-government forces to fully capture the oil-rich province after days of intense battles.

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Yemen has been mired in a civil war since the Houthi militia overran much of the country and seized all northern provinces, including the capital Sanaa, in 2014.