Gulf of Aden Security Review - January 23, 2015

Yemen:  Yemeni president, prime minister and cabinet resign from office; Ansar al Sharia militants assassinate security officer in Hadramawt; IEDs target al Houthi positions in Sana’a

Horn of Africa: Security forces in Mogadishu work to secure capital for Erdogan visit in wake of al Shabaab attack

Yemen Security Brief

• President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi, Prime Minister Khaled Bahah, and the cabinet resigned from office on January 22 in protest to the al Houthi takeover of the capital Sana’a. The resignations leave a large vacuum in the executive branch of the government, and it is unclear whether the head of Yemen’s parliament will step into the presidency as per Yemen’s constitution. In response to the resignations, a number of the southern governorates announced that they will no longer follow directives coming out of Sana’a.[1]

• Suspected Ansar al Sharia militants assassinated a security officer in al Mukalla, Hadramawt on January 23.  The two militants were reportedly riding a motorcycle, which is a trademark of Ansar al Sharia assassinations.[2]

• Unidentified militants detonated two IEDs in the al Jiraf neighborhood of the capital Sana’a on January 23.  The bombs targeted an al Houthi stronghold in the area. No casualties were reported.[3]

Horn of Africa Security Brief

• Security forces in Mogadishu deployed to secure the capital for the visit of Turkey’s President Erdogan on January 23. The deployment comes one day after al Shabaab carried out a suicide attack on a hotel hosting a Turkish delegation. President Erdogan, however, has postponed his visit due to the death of Saudi Arabia’s king.[4]