Gulf of Aden Security Review

Yemen: Yemeni Special Security Forces protest in military base in Sana’a; IED targets al Houthi patrol in al Bayda; Yemeni military bombs AQAP sites in al Bayda; unidentified assailants loot Yemeni bank vehicle in Hadramawt

Horn of Africa: Parliament asserts that the Somali Federal Government can resolve the ongoing political dispute internally amidst mounting pressure from the international community

Yemen Security Brief

• A Yemeni Special Security battalion protested in their military base in Sana’a on November 20, calling for new salaries, the dismissal of Yemeni Special Security forces commander Mansour al Ghadra, and the return of the previous commander Major General Fadil al Qusa. Al Ghadra reportedly allowed al Houthi militants to intervene and push the protesting battalion out of the military base following the protests.[1]

• Unidentified assailants detonated an improvised explosive device (IED) near an al Houthi patrol in Rada’a, al Bayda, 150 km southeast of Sana’a, on November 19, killing six al Houthi militants.[2]

• Soldiers from the Yemeni 117th Mechanized Brigade attacked al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) sites in Mukayras, al Bayda, 150 km southeast of Sana’a on November 19. No casualties were reported.[3]

• Unidentified assailants intercepted a Yemeni International Bank vehicle and stole $23,000 in al Mukalla, Hadramawt, 400 km east of Sana’a.[4]

Horn of Africa Security Brief

• National Assembly speaker Mohammed Osman Jawari issued a statement on November 20 backing the Somali Federal Parliament’s capability to resolve the ongoing dispute between the Somali president and prime minister internally. The announcement came amidst rising pressure from the international community. UN Secretary-General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman delivered remarks on November 19 at the high-level forum in Copenhagen urging the Somali Federal Government to end political divide that has similarly paralyzed the country in the past. [5]