(UPI) -- Suspected al-Qaida followers opened fire and killed a member of the security team at the U.S. Embassy in Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, a security official said.

Police said the gunmen riding a motorcycle shot and killed Qasim Aqlin, identified as an assistant security officer at the embassy, The Yemen Observer reported.

The security official died at the scene, officials said.

The security officer told the Observer the attackers had the "the hallmark of al-Qaida," adding six others "have been assassinated in this way."

The Yemeni national was shot and killed while going to work, CNN said.

The embassy saw violent protests in September when hundreds of demonstrators in front of the compound protested the U.S.-made video "Innocence of Muslims," which debased the Prophet Muhammad. At least four protesters died and more than 30 people were injured in clashes between security forces and demonstrators.