Gulf of Aden Security Review

Yemen: Saudi air defenses intercept al Houthi drones near airport in southwestern Saudi Arabia; Saudi-led coalition conducts airstrikes in Hajjah governorate; Hadi government claims it has UN assurances regarding Stockholm Agreement

Horn of Africa: Al Shabaab attacks AMISOM base in Lower Shabelle region; two al Shabaab officials defect to SFG in Gedo region; Kenya closes border crossing with Somalia

Yemen Security Brief

Saudi Air Defense Forces intercepted two al Houthi drones that were targeting the King Khalid airbase near Khamis Mushayt city in Asir region in southwestern Saudi Arabia on June 10. Saudi officials stated that the drones did not cause any casualties.[1]

The Saudi-led coalition conducted multiple airstrikes targeting al Houthi forces in Abs and Haradh districts in Hajjah governorate in northwestern Yemen on June 11. The airstrikes destroyed two al Houthi vehicles and killed multiple al Houthi soldiers.[2]

President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi’s government expressed support for the UN-brokered Stockholm Agreement on June 11 and said that it had received assurances from the UN regarding the agreement’s implementation. The Hadi government stated that the UN has promised to fully implement the 2018 agreement, which calls for the demilitarization of three Red Sea ports in al Hudaydah governorate. President Hadi previously accused UN Special Envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths of being partial to the al Houthi movement in negotiations over the agreement’s implementation.[3]

Horn of Africa Security Brief

Al Shabaab militants attacked an African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) base in Qoryoley town, located approximately 100 kilometers southwest of the Somali capital Mogadishu, on June 11. AMISOM forces repulsed the attack.[4]

Two al Shabaab officials defected to the Somali Federal Government (SFG) in Bardhere town in Gedo region in southwestern Somalia on June 11. The SFG stated that the two officials were in charge of al Shabaab’s intelligence operations and prisons in Lower and Middle Jubba regions in southern Somalia.[5]

Kenya closed one of its four border crossings with Somalia on June 11, citing security and counter-smuggling concerns. Kenya closed the southernmost border crossing with Somalia, located in Lamu County, and banned cross-border trade in the county. Kenya previously banned fishing near the Somali border in Lamu County on June 3. Kenya is currently engaged in a diplomatic dispute with the SFG.[6]