Sanaa, Dec 31 (IANS): A suspected Al Qaeda suicide bomber blew himself up Wednesday in Yemen's central province of Ibb, killing at least 33 people, security sources and medics told Xinhua.

"A suspected Al Qaeda bomber blew himself up among about 40 Houthi followers at a celebration ceremony at the Ibb cultural centre when he was waiting for security check," a security officer at the scene told Xinhua by phone.

"Governor of Ibb province, Yahya Mohammed al-Eryani, who attended the ceremony, survived the attack," he added.

This is the third bombing attack by the Al Qaeda against the Shia Houthi group this month.

On Dec 16, an Al Qaeda group launched a car bombing attack against a Houthi office in the central province of al-Bayda, killing 40 people, including 20 children.

On Dec 18, Al Qaeda militants carried out a suicide car bombing attack in the western port city of al-Hodayda, killing 18, most of them Houthi followers.