Gulf of Aden Security Review

Yemen: Saudi-led coalition airstrike kills 14 civilians in Sana’a city, northern Yemen; AQAP militants ambush al Hizam security forces in Hadramawt governorate, southern Yemen; gunmen assassinate Hadhrami Elite Forces officer in Hadramawt governorate, eastern Yemen

Horn of Africa: Deputy governor claims soldiers killed ten civilians in U.S.-backed raid in Lower Shabelle region, southern Somalia; Kenyan electoral commission refutes claims of election fraud; Turkish troops deploy to Mogadishu; lack of rain exacerbates food insecurity in Somalia; al Shabaab assassinates Somali National Intelligence and Security Agency officer in Gedo region, southwestern Somalia

Yemen Security Brief

A Saudi-led coalition airstrike killed 14 civilians in a residential neighborhood in the Faj Attan area, southwest of Sana’a city on August 25. The death toll is expected to rise as rescuers continue to pull victims from the rubble. A Saudi-led coalition airstrike hit a hotel in Arhab district, northern Sana’a governorate on August 23, killing 41 civilians.^[1]

Suspected al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) militants ambushed Emirati-backed al Hizam security forces in Ja’ar, Khanfir district, Abyan governorate, southern Yemen on August 24. An al Hizam unit attempted to return fire at the militants but unintentionally targeted a seperate al Hizam unit.^[2]

Two gunmen assassinated a Hadhrami Elite Forces officer Abdullah Naji Awad bin Taleb in Shibam district, Hadramawt governorate on August 24. Emirati-backed Hadhrami Elite Forces are tasked with security and counterterrorism operations in Hadramawt governorate. Abdullah bin Taleb was the brother of Shibam district director Faraj Naji bin Taleb, whom militants attempted to assassinate in December 2016. Militants also assassinated a Hadhrami Elite Forces soldier in Seiyun city, Hadramawt governorate on August 24. AQAP militants frequently attack Hadhrami Elite forces in Hadramawt governorate.^[3]

A militant assassinated a member of the Technical Committee of the Transitional Council of the South, Abdullah Ahmed Hassan, also known as Abdullah al Muhandes, in Shabwah governorate, southern Yemen on August 24. Transitional Council officials and southern movement activists stated his death is a great loss to the movement and affirmed the Transitional Council’s desire to further his objectives.^[4]

Horn of Africa Security Brief

U.S. forces supported a Somali National Army (SNA) raid targeting al Shabaab militants near Barire village, Lower Shabelle region, southern Somalia on August 25. Lower Shabelle region Deputy Governor Ali Nur Mohamed claimed that foreign soldiers killed ten civilians, including three children, during the raid in Barire. Mohamed stated that soldiers killed farmers tending their crops “one by one” while moving through Barire village. Somalia’s information minister refuted this claim insisting that Somali forces only killed al Shabaab militants. A U.S. Africa Command press release stated that the Department of Defense is investigating these allegations.^[5]

The Kenyan Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission filed legal documents with Kenya’s Supreme Court on August 24 refuting opposition party claims that the August 8 election results were fraudulent. Presidential candidate Raila Odinga is attempting to contest the election results in the Supreme Court. Odinga lost to incumbent President Uhuru Kenyatta by a wide margin in an election verified by the U.S., European Union, and African Union.^[6]

Roughly two hundred Turkish military trainers deployed to Turkey’s base in Mogadishu on August 23. Additional Turkish troops are expected to deploy to Mogadishu over the coming weeks to train the SNA. Turkish troops are planning to train 1,500 SNA soldiers at a time to bolster Somalia’s security and counter-al Shabaab efforts. Turkey officially opened its military base in Mogadishu on August 22.^[7]

A poor rainy season is exacerbating Somalia’s food insecurity crisis. Somalia is projected to produce up to 50 percent less cereal than it typically does due to light summer rains, according to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization. Over six million people in Somalia are in need of humanitarian assistance.^[8] 

Al Shabaab claimed its militants assassinated a Somali National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) officer in Fafahdun city, Gedo region, southwestern Somalia on August 25. Somali police also dismantled an improvised explosive device (IED) attached to a NISA officer’s car in Mogadishu on August 24. Al Shabaab is conducting an assassination campaign to destabilize the Somali government.^[9]