Gulf of Aden Security Review

Yemen: AQAP announces arrest of CIA spy; National Dialogue Conference publishes names of representatives assigned to working groups; Presidential Protection Force soldiers clash with armed gunmen in Sana’a market; Shabwah tribesmen kidnap children from Taiz governorate; gunmen assassinate director of security for Jabal ‘Ayal, Amran governorate; Brigadier General Ahmed Saleh releases staff of 30th Brigade; soldiers clash with Immigration and Passport security employees in Taiz city; President Hadi meets with Finnish foreign minister in Sana’a; police open fire on Southern Movement supporters in Crater, Aden; armed men kill prison guard in Mansoura, Aden; officers from 90th and 30th Brigades strike at Anad Air Base, Lahij governorate

Horn of Africa: Kenyan Supreme Court declares Uhuru Kenyatta election winner; AMISOM forces kill al Shabaab commander in Lower Shabelle; Ras Kamboni militiamen arrest Kismayo security chief; Somali and Emirati governments sign memorandum of understanding; al Shabaab militants shut down money remittance offices in Hiraan, Bay and Bakool provinces; al Shabaab arrest qat smugglers in Lower Shabelle; Ahlu Sunna wa al Jama’a agrees to integrate its militias into the Somali National Army; UNESCO head calls for investigation into murder of Somali journalist; 850 Sierra Leonean soldiers to arrive in Kismayo

Yemen Security Brief

• Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) announced on March 29 that it had arrested a man who had been working for the CIA in Hadramawt governorate.[1]

• National Dialogue Conference leadership published a final list containing the names of the members of the Dialogue’s nine working groups, which include committees devoted to Southern issues and Sa’ada governorate, on March 30.[2]

• Members of the Presidential Protection Force clashed with armed gunmen at a qat market on 60th street in Sana’a on March 31. One civilian was wounded in the incident.[3]

• Tribes from Shabwah governorate kidnapped tribesmen from Taiz governorate according to a report in Barakish Net on April 1.[4]

• Gunmen assassinated the director of security for Jabal ‘Ayal, Abdel Aziz Amir, in Amran governorate on March 31.[5]

• Brigadier General Ahmed Ali Saleh released the staff of the 30th Brigade after their arrest ten days ago in Sana’a, on April 1.[6]
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• Soldiers clashed with Immigration and Passport Department security personnel in the Immigration and Passports building in Taiz city on April 1.[7]

• Yemeni President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi met with Finnish Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja in Sana’a on March 31, regarding two Finnish citizens currently held hostage in Yemen.[8]

• Police opened fire on demonstrating Southern Movement supporters in Crater, Aden on March 30, killing one civilian.[9]

• Armed men killed a prison guard in Mansoura, Aden on March 29, while prisoners were being transported to a local hospital.[10]

• Engineering officers in the 90th Combat and 30th Training Brigades went on strike on April 1 at the Anad Air Base, Lahij governorate, over a dispute relating to the distribution of weapons that had been recently shipped from Sana’a.[11]

Horn of Africa Security Brief

• The Kenyan Supreme Court declared Uhuru Kenyatta the victor of Kenya’s presidential elections on March 30.  His opponent, Raila Odinga, delivered a televised statement conceding defeat in the election. Police clashed with protesters in Kisumu, an Odinga stronghold, after the announcement of the decision.[12]

• AMISOM forces killed Mohamed Abu, al Shabaab commander in Bay and Bakool regions, in a raid in Lower Shabelle on March 31.[13]

• Ras Kamboni militiamen arrested and jailed the Kismayo security chief in Kismayo, Lower Jubba on March 30.[14]

• The Somali and Emirati governments signed a memorandum of understanding on March 31 in Dubai, which included an agreement for the UAE to open an embassy in Mogadishu.[15]

• Somali government officials met in Mogadishu beginning on April 1 to appoint the head of the Somali Supreme Court and discuss judicial reforms.[16]

• Al Shabaab militants shut down the offices of Dahabshil, a money remittance firm, in Hiran, Bay and Bakool provinces on March 31.[17]

• Al Shabaab militants arrested eight people in Bulo Marer and Kurtunwarey towns, Lower Shabelle, for smuggling qat into the area, on April 1.[18]

• UNESCO head Irina Bokova called for an investigation into the murder of Somali journalist Rahma Abdulkadir in New York on March 31.[20]