Gulf of Aden Security Review

Yemen: Hadi government accepts UN Special Envoy’s peace plan while al Houthi delegation rejects it; Saudi military spokesman condemns border violations; al Houthi-Saleh forces shell town in Najran province and clash with Saudi soldiers along Saudi-Yemeni border; al Houthi-Saleh forces clash with government forces in al Jawf governorate; ISIS-affiliated news agency claims responsibility for assassination of police investigator in Aden

Horn of Africa: Al Shabaab militants conduct SVBIED attack on Somali Criminal Investigation Department in Mogadishu; Somali security forces interdict SVBIED near Lido Beach, Mogadishu; al Shabaab militants attack SNA base in Mararey area outside Mogadishu; suspected al Shabaab militants conduct IED attack on SNA convoy in the Huriwa district of Mogadishu

Yemen Security Brief

• President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi’s government agreed to a peace plan outlined by the UN Special Envoy for Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, on July 31. The proposal stipulates that al Houthi-Saleh forces hand over weapons and withdraw from Sana’a and its environs, Taiz governorate, and al Hudaydah governorate in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 2216. The al Houthi delegation rejected the proposal as a “media stunt,” and member of the al Houthi delegation Hamza al Houthi stated that the “ideas proposed by the Special Envoy cannot represent an agreement to the solution.” The Hadi government delegation will travel to Riyadh and meet with Ould Cheikh Ahmed on August 1. The Kuwaiti government extended peace talks until August 7 at the request of the Special Envoy.[1]

• Saudi military spokesman Brigadier General Ahmed al Asiri warned al Houthi-Saleh forces on July 31 that violations of the Saudi border are a “red line.” Al Houthi shelling and missile attacks into Saudi Arabia increased in recent weeks.[2]

• Al Houthi-Saleh forces fired a shell targeting Samitah town, Najran province in Saudi Arabia on August 1, killing four people and injuring three others. Al Houthi-Saleh fighters clashed with Saudi soldiers along the Saudi-Yemeni border on July 31, killing at least seven Saudi soldiers.[3]

• Al Houthi-Saleh forces clashed with government forces near al Khanjar area in Khab wa Sha’af district, al Jawf governorate on July 31, killing at least eight al Houthi fighters. Government forces also injured a senior al Houthi leader, according to a pro-Hadi source.[4]

• Pro-Islamic State of Iraq and al Sham (ISIS) ‘Amaq news agency claimed that ISIS militants assassinated police investigator Sameh al Hasani in Sheikh Othman district, Aden city, on July 30. ISIS militants detonated an improvised explosive device (IED) attached to al Hasani’s vehicle, killing the investigator.[5]

Horn of Africa Security Brief

• Al Shabaab militants conducted a complex attack on Somalia’s Criminal Investigation Department in Mogadishu on July 31. The militants detonated two suicide vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices (SVBIEDs) at the building's gate. Security personnel prevented two al Shabaab gunmen from entering the compound following the blasts. The attack killed at least seven civilians. Al Shabaab launched a double SVBIED attack on the UN’s Halane Base on July 26 that killed at least 12.[6]

• Somali security forces interdicted an SVBIED in the Lido Beach area of Mogadishu on July 31. Security personnel recovered small arms and rocket propelled grenades (RPGs) from the vehicle but did not apprehend any suspects. Al Shabaab conducted SVBIED attacks on targets in Mogadishu on July 26 and 31.[7]

• Al Shabaab militants attacked a Somali National Army (SNA) base in Mararey area located outside Mogadishu on July 31. The militants attacked the base with small arms fire. SNA forces successfully repelled the attack. Al Shabaab media claimed multiple SNA casualties.[8]

• Suspected al Shabaab militants conducted an improvised explosive device (IED) attack on a SNA convoy in the Huriwa district of Mogadishu on July 31. The attack killed two SNA soldiers.[9]