Gulf of Aden Security Review

Yemen: Abdul Malik al Houthi dismisses the U.S. request for sanctions; Ansar al Sharia militants attack al Houthi gunmen in al Bayda; unidentified forces launch airstrike against AQAP members in al Bayda

Horn of Africa: AMISOM and Somali National army launched a new offensive targeting al Shabaab safe havens in Galgudud region; rival clan militias clash in Galgudud region; unidentified armed assailants murder woman in Mogadishu

Yemen Security Brief

• Abdul Malik al Houthi dismissed the United States’ November 3 request for the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to exercise sanctions against former President Saleh and members of the al Houthi leadership in a televised address on November 4. Al Houthi also stated that he will not allow President Hadi to pull Yemeni into an economic abyss.[1]

• Ansar al Sharia militants attacked al Houthi gunmen in Rada’a, al Bayda on November 4, killing at least ten al Houthis. Unidentified forces later launched an airstrike against the Ansar al Sharia militants in Rada’a on November 4, killing at least ten militants.[2]

• Unidentified forces launched an airstrike against al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) militants traveling in a car in Qifah, al Bayda on November 4. Four militants were killed in the strike, including an explosives expert Ahmad Jarallah, also known as Abu Saleh.[3]

Horn of Africa Security Brief

• African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and Somali National Army (SNA) forces launched a new offensive on November 4 targeting the remaining al Shabaab territory in Galgudud region.[4]

• Rival clan militias clashed in Balanbale, Galgudud region on November 4. The confrontation, which killed at least four people, occurred as a result of an ongoing land dispute in the area.[5]

• Three unidentified men armed with knives killed a woman at her residence in Mogadishu on November 3. Unidentified assailants killed two schoolgirls one day prior in Mogadishu on November 2.[6]