Yemen cancelled a military parade planned to mark the reunification of the country after nearly 100 soldiers were killed in a massive suicide attack claimed by al-Qaeda yesterday.
Instead, Yemeni soldiers marched in a National Day parade as President Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi watched from behind a bullet-proof glass shield.
A sombre mood hung over the event, which passed off without any repeat of yesterday’s bloodshed despite militant threats to carry out more attacks.
The president has vowed to fight "terrorism regardless of the sacrifices".
As soldiers rehearsed for the parade yesterday, a soldier detonated explosives hidden under his uniform, killing at least 96 troops. A further 300 were injured.
Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), the name given to the group's Yemen branch, claimed responsibility for the attack.
It said it targeted "the defence minister and other leaders of the US war on our people in Abyan" province in the south.
The attack came 10 days into an all-out offensive against the jihadists in towns and cities in Yemen's restive south that al-Qaeda has held since May of last year.
The attack was the largest against Yemeni troops in the capital since Mr Hadi assumed power in February.
US President Barack Obama said the United States was very worried about the threat posed by al-Qaeda's affiliates in Yemen.
He pledged to work with the Yemeni government to crack down on the extremists whom Washington blames for several attempts to blow up US airliners and cargo planes.
"We're going to continue to work with the Yemeni government to try to identify AQAP leadership and operations and try to thwart them," Mr Obama said at a press conference wrapping up the NATO summit in Chicago.
"That's important for US safety, it's also important for the stability of Yemen and for the region."
