Al Qaeda has apologised after doctors and patients were slaughtered at a hospital during an attack on a military compound - blaming a rogue gunman for the murders.   Shocking CCTV footage emerged of an Al Qaeda fighter shooting unarmed hospital staff in the head during an attack on the Defence Ministry compound in Sanaa, Yemen, earlier this month.In one scene, the gunman can be seen cornering a group inside the compound's hospital building before throwing a grenade directly at them.At least 52 people were killed in the attack which has sparked outrage among both across Yemen and in the international community. But Al Qaeda's commander of its Yemen wing, Qassim Ar-Reimy, has now condemned the killings and accused a renegade fighter of being responsible.In a pre-recorded video he said: 'We confess to this mistake and fault, we offer our apologies and condolence to the families of the victims'.He goes on to claim that the focus of the attack had always been the Ministry and not the hospital.He said: 'We did not target them on purpose, this is not of our religion or our morals, we accept full responsibility for what happened in the hospital.'The attack was on the Ministry of Defence, it was not on the Hospital. 'The ministry's hospitals are abundant in the country. If we wanted to attack (the hospitals) we would have - especially as they have no noteworthy security.'We attacked the Ministry. The Ministry of Defence Command Center to be precise.'The killing of unarmed medics and patients, captured on closed-circuit television footage and broadcast by state media, caused widespread outrage in Yemen, where al Qaeda has portrayed itself as fighting for normal people against foreign drone strikes.Al Qaeda's offshoot Ansar al-Sharia (Partisans of Islamic Law) claimed responsibility earlier this month for the December 5 assault - the worst attack in Yemen for 18 months.It said it attacked the compound because it believed it to house an operations room for drone attacks carried out by the United States against Islamist militants, which have also led to civilian deaths.Many of those killed died inside the compound's hospital, where staff said they had seen foreign doctors and nurses executed by attackers.The footage released on state television showed uniformed figures wandering around the hospital's corridors, shooting medics and patients.One attacker was shown walking up to a group of cowering patients and calmly tossing a hand grenade into their midst before ducking behind a wall. (dailymail.co.uk)ANN.Az