Yemen suicide car bombing, assault by gunmen on defence ministry kills 52

Security forces at the scene after an explosion at the Defense Ministry complex in Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Dec. 5, 2013. (AP / Yemen Defense Ministry)

ADEN, Yemen -- Yemen's government says 52 people have been killed in a suicide car bombing and a subsequent attack by gunmen on the Defence Ministry in the capital, Sanaa.

A statement by the Supreme Security Commission, which is led by the president, says 167 people also have also been wounded in Thursday's attack, the deadliest in Sanaa in years.

They say casualties included soldiers, staff at a military hospital inside the Defence Ministry's downtown complex and civilians.

Nobody immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but suicide bombings and complex attacks are the hallmarks of al Qaeda.