Drone strike in Yemen kills suspected al Qaeda militants

Sanaa, Yemen (CNN) -- A 'carefully orchestrated' drone strike in Yemen on Saturday killed at least 10 suspected militants, but it also resulted in the deaths of three civilian laborers, a high-level Yemeni government official told CNN.

'This was a joint U.S.-Yemeni operation,' the official said. 'Intelligence on this was top-notch, and Intelligence gathering was going on for some time.'

'Unfortunately,' the official said, 'a civilian truck was also hit.'

The strike, which killed at least 15 people, hit a pickup in al-Hazemiyah district of al-Bayda province, three Yemeni Defense Ministry sources said. The militants were heading to neighboring Shabwa province, a hotbed for al Qaeda, they said.

'The truck targeted carried 11 militants. The targeting came while they were in transit after leaving a training site. Ten were killed and one was injured,' the source said.

A civilian truck carrying five day laborers was struck in the drone assault,' the official said. Three died and two were injured.

'The Yemeni government is being very careful gathering intel before these strikes to avoid civilian casualties,' the high-level official said.

This operation occurred after the recent emergence of a video showing a large gathering of al Qaeda members in Yemen. But there is no indication -- at this point -- that this strike had anything to do with the video, made last month and aired by CNN earlier this week.

'The strike today had nothing to do with the tape showing the gathering of AQAP,' the official said, referring to the al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula militant group. 'This operation was in the making for some time, as AQAP has stepped up its attacks against military targets and government officials in Bayda.'

'We have had our eyes on them'

A death toll issued earlier Saturday by the three Yemen Defense Ministry officials was slightly higher. They said 12 suspected militants were killed and three nearby civilians died in an operation they regard as successful.

Documenting death by drone

'The militants were on a coordinating mission, and we have had our eyes on them for quite a while now,' a senior Defense Ministry official told CNN on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to talk to media.

A source from the region said the strike was aimed at three 'well-known' AQAP operatives linked to a training camp in southern Yemen. But nobody killed in the strike was believed to be among AQAP's senior leadership, the source said. The targets of the drone strike have been closely monitored for some time during their training camp activities, the source said.

Salem al-Kashm, an eyewitness to the airstrike, said three civilians who were traveling in a separate vehicle were also killed.

'Our vehicle was 15 meters from the attacked pickup, and the shrapnel from the strike poured on our car. Minutes after the first attack a second attack took place killing three of my friends in process,' said .

'The drone then kept going in circles after the attack to ensure that none of the militants were able to escape,' he said.

Yemen's al Qaeda threat

One of the Defense MInistry officials said, 'It's unfortunate the civilians were there in the wrong time.' Four civilians injured in the drone strike were given immediate medical attention.

The United States is the only country known to have conducted drone strikes in Yemen.

So far this year, including Saturday's strike, there have been eight drone attacks in the country, according to Peter Bergen, CNN national security analyst.

Only this week, Yemen's Foreign Minister Abu Bakr al-Qirbi said that Yemen could handle the al Qaeda threat alone. 'Security is one of the main challenges facing Yemen,' al-Qirbi said.

Even though more voices have risen within Yemen in opposition to U.S.-led drone strikes, President Abdu Rabu Hadi has shown no sign his counterterrorism strategy will change, especially since al Qaeda has proved to be a bigger threat than anticipated.

But his stance has angered some parliamentarians.

'It's a black dot for President Hadi to allow drones to roam our skies and kill our people,' said Ali al-Mamari, a prominent member of parliament.

New al Qaeda video signals new round of plotting

Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, also known as AQAP and located in Yemen, is considered the most dangerous al Qaeda affiliate. The CIA and the Pentagon have repeatedly killed AQAP leaders with drone strikes.

The recently released new video shows what looks like the largest and most dangerous gathering of al Qaeda in years.

In the middle of the clip, the man known as al Qaeda's crown prince, Nasir al-Wuhayshi, appears out in the open, greeting followers in Yemen.

Al-Wuhayshi, the No. 2 leader of al Qaeda globally and the head of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, has said he wants to attack the United States.

But in the video, he looks unconcerned that he could be hit by an American drone.

In a speech to the group, al-Wuhayshi makes it clear that he's going after the United States, saying 'We must eliminate the cross. ... The bearer of the cross is America!'

The video started appearing on jihadist websites recently, drawing the attention of U.S. officials and global terrorism experts.

U.S. officials believe the highly produced video is recent and authentic. With some fighters' faces blurred, there is worry it signals a new round of plotting. Every frame of the video is now being analyzed by the United States.

Many drone strikes have been launched against militants in Yemen over the years.That this gathering was not targeted suggests that theCIA and the Pentagon either didn't know about it or couldn't get a drone there in time to strike.

'The U.S. intelligence community should be surprised that such a large group of al Qaeda assembled together, including the leadership, and somehow they didn't notice,' said Bergen.

'The main problem about this group is that it has a bomb maker who can put bombs onto planes that can't be detected,' he said.

That bomb maker, Ibrahim al-Asiri, is believed to be responsible for several attack attempts against the United States, including the failed 2009 Christmas Day underwear bomber attack in Detroit.

Al-Asiri doesn't appear in the video. He remains in hiding, and intelligence experts say he and other AQAP leaders have gone back to using couriers to communicate to avoid detection. That makes it even harder to figure out what al-Wuhayshi may order next.

But the terror group leader's goal is clear, CNN terrorism analyst Paul Cruickshank said.

'His message to the United States,' Cruickshank said, 'was very much the same as (former al Qaeda leader Osama) bin Laden's: 'We're coming after you.' '

CNN's Hakim Almasmari reported from Sanaa, Yemen. Barbara Starr reported from Washington. Yousuf Basil and Joe Sterling contributed to this report