Pro-government forces attacked al-Qaida militants in southern Yemen today, killing 15 jihadis but losing 11 of their own troops. <br/><br/>The officials said, fighting began when troops backed by a Saudi-led coalition attacked an al-Qaida stronghold in the Marakasha mountains in Abyan province, east of the southern city of Aden. The area has long been a militant haven, attracting fighters in the 1990s returning from Afghanistan after fighting the Soviets.<br/>'<br/>The officials said more than 60 military vehicles were involved in the operation, firing automatic weapons and rocket-propelled grenades before they were repulsed.<br/>'<br/>Yemen has been in the grip of a civil war since 2014, when Shiite Houthi rebels and allied forces swept down from the north and captured the capital, Sanaa. A Saudi-led coalition has been helping government forces battle the rebels for nearly two years.<br/>