Yemeni security forces conducted an operation that killed two leaders of al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) in the southern province of Shabwa on Thursday, the country's Defense Ministry reported.

"Mosaaid Mubarak al-Jard and his brother Abdullah were killed Thursday dawn in an operation conducted by the Yemeni security forces," the ministry quoted a provincial security official as saying.

The killed were on the most wanted list for their long-time role in carrying out several terrorist operations against the government, the official said.

The ministry did not provide further details.

Shabwa, some 458 km southeast to the capital Sanaa, is believed to be a stronghold of hundreds of al-Qaida militants, including the wanted U.S.-born Yemeni cleric Anwar al-Awlaki.

Besides the problems of resurgent AQAP in the south and east of the country, Yemen's security and stability have also been undermined by the anti-government protests since mid February which demand an immediate end to the 33-year rule of President Ali Abdullah Saleh.