Gulf of Aden Security Review - October 4, 2013

Yemen: Official body count from raid on al Mukalla headquarters; gunmen assassinate lieutenant colonel in Aden

Horn of Africa: Gunmen assassinate radical preacher Sheikh Ibrahim Omar in Mombasa, Kenya and spark deadly protest; one-hundred Somalis gather to condemn al Shabaab in Toronto; Minnesota Somali leader pleads Congress for resources

Yemen Security Brief

• An official reported that the raid to recapture the Second Military District headquarters in al Mukalla, Hadramawt government resulted in the deaths of 25 al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) militants and ten soldiers. Khalid Batarafi, a senior AQAP figure, was among the dead.[1]

• Unidentified gunmen assassinated Walid al Wahhabi in Crater, Aden governorate on October 3. Al Wahhabi was a lieutenant colonel in the special forces and the commander of Military Camp 20.[2]

Horn of Africa Security Brief

• Unknown gunmen assassinated radical preacher Sheikh Ibrahim Omar in Mombasa, Kenya on October 3. Sheikh Omar was considered the successor to al Shabaab-linked preacher Aboud Rogo Mohammed, killed in August 2012. Kenyan Muslims protested the assassination and killed at least four people during clashes with the police. A prominent Muslim cleric claimed the police were behind the assassination.[3] 

• One hundred Somalis gathered to support victims of the Nairobi Westgate attack and denounce al Shabaab in Toronto, Canada, on October, 3.[4]

• A prominent member of the Minnesota Somali population asked the U.S. government to provide resources to counter al Shabaab recruitment in Minnesota during testimony before the House Foreign Affairs Committee on October 3.[5]