Gulf of Aden Security Review - June 25, 2013

Yemen: Police foil pipeline plot in Sirwah, Ma’rib; 111th Brigade discovers explosive device in Abyan; students bring grenades to exam in Dhamar; security kill al Qaeda elements at checkpoint in Sana’a; gunmen attack military camp in Aden; man shot in al Dhaleh; gunmen assassinate two police officers in Ataq, Shabwah; demonstrations against the U.S. to be held June 26 in Sana’a; First Armored Division soldiers move out of Sana’a headquarters; GPC member storms Sana’a airport; Southern Movement leader detained and released at Sana’a airport

Horn of Africa: Hassan Dahir Aweys flees Barawe, Lower Shabelle region; al Shabaab militants ambush Somali convoy near Awdiinle, Bay region; landmine hits minibus in Heliwa district, Mogadishu; al Shabaab attacks home of Baidoa, Bay region governor; grenade thrown at home of government official in Afgoi, Lower Shabelle region; grenade attack occurs in Wajir, Kenya; Somali police increase security in Mogadishu; Barclays stops Somali money transfers; unnamed East African jihadist group releases biography of killed fighter; Somali president meets with Djiboutian ambassador in Mogadishu

Yemen Security Brief

• Police foiled an attempt to blow up the oil pipeline in Sirwah, Ma’rib governorate on June 22.[1]

• Soldiers from the 111th Infantry Brigade discovered an explosive device in an ambulance in Abyan governorate.[2]

• Police in Maghirib ‘Ans, Dhamar governorate arrested two students who brought grenades into an examination center for a secondary education certificate exam on June 25.[3]

• Security forces at a checkpoint in Bani al Harith, Sana’a governorate killed one and arrested two al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) militants on June 24. The gunmen were carrying AQAP documents and opened fire on the soldiers at the checkpoint. One of the gunmen escaped.[4]

• Gunmen killed one soldier and wounded another guarding the gate to the Special Security Forces camp in Crater, Aden governorate on June 24. The gunmen escaped.[5]

• An unknown gunman killed a man in al Dhaleh late on June 24. Authorities suspect the gunman was attempting to plant explosives near the appellate court.[6]

• Gunmen in a car assassinated two criminal investigation officers in Ataq, Shabwah governorate on June 25.[7]

• Human rights activists planned demonstrations in front of the U.S. embassy in Sana’a for June 26 to protest prisoners still being held at Guantanamo Bay.[8]

• The First Armored Division, which was dissolved two months ago by presidential decree, remobilized. The first group of 5,000 soldiers departed the camp in Sana’a for Dhamar and Ma’rib on June 24. More will deploy soon to other governorates.[9]

• Sheikh Mohammad bin Naji Shayef, one of the leaders of the General People’s Congress (GPC), broke into the Sana’a International Airport with a dozen gunmen to bid farewell to the head of the Arab Parliament on June 24.[10]

• Police arrested Southern Movement leader Fawaz Baoum at the Sana’a International Airport on June 24. Sources in the Southern Movement confirmed that authorities released him a few hours later.[11]

Horn of Africa Security Brief

• Senior al Shabaab official Hassan Dahir Aweys fled Barawe, Lower Shabelle region on June 25. One source is reporting that he traveled to Faax, Mudug region whereas another is reporting he arrived in Hundulle, Mudug region. Aweys left Barawe because of fighting that erupted between troops loyal to him and those loyal Mukhtar Abu Zubair.[12]

• Al Shabaab militants ambushed a Somali convoy near Awdiinle, Bay region on June 25. One government soldier was killed and nine others were injured.[13]

• A landmine hit a civilian minibus in the Heliwa district of Mogadishu on June 23. One civilian was killed and another was injured. Those behind the attack are not known.[14]

• Al Shabaab attacked the home of the Baidoa, Bay region mayor on June 23. The al Shabaab militants were ultimately repelled and two of the group’s fighters were injured.[15]

• A grenade was thrown at the home of a government official in Afgoi, Lower Shabelle region on June 23. One civilian was killed in the blast and five others were injured. Somali security forces conducted searches following the attack but the assailants were not found and no group has claimed responsibility.[16]

• A grenade attack injured four people in Wajir, Kenya on June 25. The explosion is reportedly part of the continuing clan violence in northwestern Kenya.[17]

• Somali police said that they were redoubling efforts to secure Mogadishu on June 24. Somali forces are conducting searches to weed out suspected al Shabaab militants.[18]

• Barclays announced on June 24 that it would be stopping money transfers to Somalia for fear that the money funding terrorist operations in the country. The Somali government asked Barclays not to stop money transfers because it is the main source of income for many people living in the country.[19]

• An unnamed East African jihadist group released a biography on one of its fighters, Saleh Ali al Nabhani, on May 9. Al Nabhani was born in Kenya but trained in Afghanistan and was involved in the 9/11 terrorist attacks. He was killed in Lower Shabelle region in September 2009.[20]

• Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud met with the Djiboutian ambassador in Mogadishu on June 23 to discuss security cooperation.[21]