Six Yemeni soldiers, six attackers, and four bystanders were killed in the blast in the Yemeni capital of Sanaa.
Local media sources report that the car bomb set off a series of explosions outside the U.S. Embassy, and that the attackers had been dressed in army uniforms.
A group called Islamic Jihad in Yemen took responsibility for the attack and said it would strike against other embassies, including those of Britain and Saudi Arabia, unless the Yemeni government agreed to release several of it members from jail.
"We, the organization of Islamic Jihad in Yemen, declare our responsibility for the suicide attack on the American embassy in Sanaa," a statement released by the group read.
The statement also said that other attacks would take place "until our demands
are met."
Yemen has seen a series of attacks by al-Qaeda inspired groups this year. The most serious of these came in March when a mortar attack on the U.S. Embassy missed its target and hit a nearby school, killing 13 girls and five soldiers.
