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The governor of Yemen's second city Aden was killed on Sunday by a car bomb that tore through a residential neighbourhood, a local official and witnesses said.

The attack, claimed by the so-called Islamic State group, killed Major General Gaafar Mohamed Saad and at least six of his bodyguards in the Tawahi district of the major port city, the sources said. 

Sources told al-Araby al-Jadeed that Saad was travelling to his office on Sunday morning when the explosion struck his convoy in the Rimbaud area of the southern port city.

Authorities are investigating the exact cause of the explosion.

Tawahi has become a stronghold in recent months for extremists including al-Qaeda, whose militants have expanded their presence across the city.

Saad was only recently appointed governor and was known to be close to President Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi, who returned to Aden last month after several months in exile in Riyadh.

Pro-Hadi forces, backed by a Saudi-led coalition, have battled the Houthi rebels in Yemen since March, after the insurgents overran the capital Sanaa and advanced south, forcing Hadi's government to flee.

Saad's death comes a day after the country's UN envoy held talks with Hadi in Aden aimed at kickstarting peace talks between the warring sides.