Gulf of Aden Security Review - June 13, 2014

Yemen: al Houthi spokesman criticizes appointment of new ministers in Yemeni government; unidentified assailants detonate IED near oil pipeline in Aden

Horn of Africa: Unidentified assailants ambush Ethiopian AMISOM convoy in Bakool region; unidentified assailants ambush Ahlu Sunna wa al Jama’a convoy in Galgudud region; unidentified assailants raid SNA base in Mogadishu

Yemen Security Brief

• Al Houthi spokesman Mohammed Abdul Salam stated, via his Facebook page, that the recent appointment of new ministers in the Yemeni government failed to meet the demands of the people on June 12.[1]

• Unidentified assailants detonated an improvised explosive device (IED) that damaged the oil pipeline that runs between the Aden Refinery Company and al Husoh electro thermal station in Aden city on June 12.[2]

Horn of Africa Security Brief

• Unidentified assailants ambushed an Ethiopian AMISOM convoy near Wajid, Bakool region on June 13. The Ethiopian forces resisted the attack, engaging in heavy fighting with the assailants. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the ambush.[3]

• Unidentified assailants ambushed an Ahlu Sunna wa al Jama’a (ASWJ) delegation, which was returning from inter-clan mediation talks, near Balanbal, Galgudud region on June 13. The ensuing clash killed at least three people, including one of the assailants, and injured former ASWJ militia leader Hussein Dubad. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.[4]

• Unidentified assailants raided a Somali National Army (SNA) base in the Heliwa district of Mogadishu on June 13. The raid sparked a heavy exchange of gunfire between the assailants and SNA troops. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack. Separately, Somali security forces conducted a security operation, arresting an unspecified number of suspected al Shabaab militants, in the Hawl Wadag district of Mogadishu on June 13. The operation was reportedly conducted in response to recent violence in the Bakara market within the district.[5]