Warplanes attack Aden palace, Yemeni president safe: government source

ADEN (Reuters) - Unidentified aircraft dropped bombs on Friday over an area that includes the residence of Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi in the southern city of Aden but he was unharmed, sources at the presidency said. It was the second such attack in two days to target the presidential compound in the al-Maasheeq district of Aden and comes amid a deepening power struggle between Hadi and the Shi'ite Muslim Houthi group which controls the capital Sanaa. "The president is in a safe place and was not in the palace," the source said. "I head the sound of the planes and the anti-aircraft guns. There is no damage," the source added. Witnesses and a presidential aide earlier said anti-aircraft guns had opened fire on planes flying high above the presidential compound in Aden. The witnesses said the planes targeted by the gunfire were flying so high that they were barely visible in the sky above the Crater district of Aden where Hadi lives. A warplane dropped bombs on the compound on Thursday during clashes between supporters and opponents of Hadi. An aide said Hadi had moved after that attack, which appeared to have caused a fire in an area of the compound but no casualties. The Houthis are allied with former Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh, who still wields influence in the armed forces despite having given up power in 2011 after mass protests against his rule. (Reporting by Mohammed Mukhashaf and Sami Aboudi; Editing by Gareth Jones)