Gulf of Aden Security Review - July 30, 2013

Yemen: Drone strike targets AQAP in Saeed, Shabwah; President Hadi meets with U.S. Secretary of State; security forces find RPGs in Taiz; Hajjah official warns of plot to control the city; clashes between Salafists and al Houthis in Ibb; al Houthis arrest two in Amran; al Qaeda in Iraq issues statement about Said al Shihri

Horn of Africa: Somali police set up road blocks in Mogadishu; Ethiopian government accuses Eritrea of supporting al Shabaab; Somali interior and national security minister fires Lower Shabelle administration; al Shabaab kills farmer in Mahas district, Hiraan region; Taiwanese and Malaysian delegations travel to Kismayo, Lower Jubba region; Turkey vows continued support for Somalia despite attack on Turkish diplomatic buildings

Yemen Security Brief

• A suspected drone strike in Saeed, Shabwah governorate killed two Yemenis and a Saudi member of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) on July 30.[1]

• President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi met with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry during his visit to the United States to discuss mutual cooperation, humanitarian aid, the National Dialogue Conference (NDC), and the status of the Guantanamo Bay detainees.[2]

• Security forces at the al Hawban checkpoint in al Taiziyya, Taiz governorate stopped a man with two rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) shells on July 29.[3]

• Sheikh Fahad Dahshoush, head of the Popular Congress in Hajjah, said that Islah recruited more than 5,000 members to try and control the city militarily.[4]

• Clashes between Salafists and al Houthi supporters killed two and wounded five in al Radma, Ibb governorate on July 29.[5]

• Al Houthis detained two men in Wadi Sufyan, Amran governorate on July 27 because they did not pay zakat.[6]

• Al Qaeda in Iraq, now operating under the name Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), offered its condolences for the death of Said al Shihri in a drone strike.[7]

Horn of Africa Security Brief

• Somali security personnel set up roadblocks in Mogadishu for the fourth day in a row on July 30. Police stopped traffic traveling around the busy KM4 junction as well as near the Mogadishu airport.[8]

• The Ethiopian government denounced Eritrean involvement in Somalia’s affairs, accusing the country of continuing to provide material support to al Shabaab. Ethiopian officials called for stricter sanctions against Eritrea.[9]

• Somali Interior and National Security Minister Abdikarin Hussein Guled dismissed the regional administration in Lower Shabelle. Guled fired the government officials following prolonged infighting. A new administration has not yet been announced.[10]

• Al Shabaab militants shot and killed a farmer in Mahas district, Hiraan region on July 29 after stealing his animals. A girl was also injured in the incident.[11]

• Taiwanese and Malaysian delegations traveled to Kismayo, Lower Jubba region on July 29 in order to meet with new Jubbaland political leaders and investigate the humanitarian situation in the city.[12]

• Foreign Minister of Turkey, Ahmet Davutoglu, said that the Turkish government would not cease its aid to and humanitarian efforts in Somalia following a recent attack on Turkish diplomatic buildings in Mogadishu on July 27.[13]