Aden, Sep 5 (IANS): A senior military commander of the pro-government Yemeni forces was killed in an explosion in the country's southern port city of Aden, a security official said.

"Abomb explosion struck a vehicle carrying Colonel Musa Mashdali while he was passing through a main roundabout in the northern entrance of Aden province," the official told Xinhua news agency on Saturday shortly after the incident.

He said the explosion was caused by an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) and was likely to be detonated by remote control.

"Musa died immediately at the scene while two of his bodyguards were critically injured by IED explosion," he said.

Witnesses said security forces cordoned off the bombing area and members of the Criminal Investigation Department began investigating the incident.

No group has claimed responsibility for the explosion.

Local authorities are trying to maintain security and stability in the strategic Yemeni port city considered as the country's temporary capital.

However, sporadic bombing incidents and drive-by shooting attacks still occur in Aden, where the Saudi-backed Yemeni government has been based since 2015.

Yemen has been mired in a civil war since late 2014, when the Iran-backed Houthi rebels seized control of several northern provinces and forced the internationally-recognized government out of the capital Sanaa.