ADEN: Six people were killed and 16 others wounded as a hand grenade exploded by accident in a local market of southern Yemen on Wednesday, a security official and a witness said.

The grenade exploded in Rabat market, in the Lahj province town of Rasd, killing six, including the person carrying it, the official said, requesting anonymity. "The incident did not have any political motivation."

A witness said the person carrying the grenade pulled its pin by mistake while trying to take money out of his bag.

The impoverished nation is awash with personal arms and carrying weapons is entrenched in the traditions of the Arabian peninsula republic.