REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, SANAA -- A car bomb exploded Saturday in Yemen's rebel-held capital Sanaa, not far from the vacated US embassy complex and close to a position of the Shiite insurgents, witnesses said.

The blast occurred near a mosque in Sawan neighbourhood, in northeastern Sanaa, close to a checkpoint leading to the US Embassy, witnesses said.

The target of the attack was unclear.

Shiite Huthi rebels have a military position in the area, witnesses said.

There were no immediate reports of casualties.

The American embassy was vacated after rebels seized Yemen's capital in September last year. Only Yemeni guards remain around the complex.

Several deadly explosions have in the past months targeted mosques frequented by the Iran-backed rebels and their supporters.

The Sunni extremist Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for some of the attacks.

The rebels have seized several regions of Yemen. But pro-government forces aided by Saudi-led air raids, have recently managed to wrest back some southern provinces, including Yemen's second city of Aden.

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