Gulf of Aden Security Review - September 26, 2014

Yemen: Ansar al Sharia states their attacks target al Houthis; AQAP militants attack Zaydi cleric’s house in al Bayda; U.S. State Department reduces staff working in embassy in Sana’a; unidentified forces hack Ansar Allah’s website; IMF issues statement regarding Yemeni economy

Horn of Africa: Unidentified gunmen assassinate village chief in Hiraan region; Somaliland forces and Puntland forces clash in Sanaag region

Yemen Security Brief

• Ansar al Sharia confirmed on September 25 that leader Adel Hardabah was killed in an airstrike in Nisab, Shabwah on September 25. Ansar al Sharia also denied they killed 15 civilians in Hijaj, al Dhaleh on September 24, stating they only targeted those working with al Houthis. Separately, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) leader, Adel Ahmed al Misuda, died in a car crash in Abyan on September 26.[1]

• AQAP militants attacked the house of an al Houthi Zaydi cleric in Rada’a, al Badya on September 25. Fighting between AQAP militants and al Houthi popular committee militias followed the attack. No casualties have been reported. [2]

• The U.S. State Department reduced the number of staff working in the U.S. embassy in Sana’a and issued a travel warning to U.S. citizens living and traveling in Yemen on September 25.[3]

• Unidentified forces hacked Ansar Allah’s website on September 25 and published photographs of al Houthi militants in the act of looting homes in Sana’a. Separately, al Houthi gunmen stormed multiple mosques throughout Sana’a on September 26. Thousands of al Houthi supporters also gathered on Airport Road in Sana’a on September 26 to celebrate recent victories.[4]

• The International Monetary Fund (IMF) stated that delaying cuts to Yemen’s energy subsidy program will risk destabilizing the economy.[5]

Horn of Africa Security Brief

• Two unidentified gunmen shot and killed a local village chief, Maallim Aden Mohamed Aden, in Beledweynene, Hiraan region on September 26 before fleeing the scene. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.[6]

• Somaliland forces conducted an assault on Badhan in Saneeg region in northern Somalia that was repelled by Puntland troops after heavy confrontations on September 24. The extent of the casualties remains unknown.[7]