"The bodies of 20 soldiers were taken to the mortuary, and there are many others wounded," a medic said at the Ibn Sina hospital in the Hadramawt provincial capital, Mukalla.
Another medic said later that "six others have died of their wounds."
A military official added that "a pickup truck driven by a suicide bomber exploded at the entrance of the presidential palace in Mukalla" as Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi took the oath of office as president in the nation's capital, Sanaa.
The official said the attack "carries the fingerprints of al Qaeda," adding that the attacker "could be Mohammed al Sayari," a Saudi who is originally from Hadramawt.
The same source said that no high-ranking officials were in the palace when the bomber struck.
The palace is guarded by troops of the elite Republican Guard, who are under the command of outgoing president Ali Abdullah Saleh's son Ahmed.
The bombing was followed by an exchange of fire between the soldiers and gunmen, the military official said.
Mukalla residents said that gunfire was heard from the area surrounding the Ibn Sina hospital, as a medic said that Republican Guard troops were kicking out civilian patients to make room for their wounded.
"Republican Guard troops have surrounded the hospital to guard their men," the military official said.
In an address to the nation straight after being sworn in to succeed Saleh, Hadi vowed to press the fight against al Qaeda and restore security across his impoverished nation.
"It is a patriotic and religious duty to continue the battle against al Qaeda," the new president said, adding that "if we don't restore security, the only outcome will be chaos."
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