Gulf of Aden Security Review - April 13, 2015

Yemen: Al Houthis kill three Saudi soldiers during border clashes; al Houthis clash with tribal militants in Ma’rib; airstrike targets AQAP militants; Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi appoints Khaled Bahah to vice presidency

Horn of Africa: Police kill suspected al Shabaab militants in Coast Province, Kenya

Yemen Security Brief

• Al Houthi militants killed three Saudi soldiers during an exchange of artillery fire in Najran, Saudi Arabia on April 11. Saudi authorities reportedly began assessing 96 villages along the Saudi-Yemeni border for possible evacuation on April 12 in response to the continued exchange of fire between the al Houthis and Saudi military on the border.[1]

• Al Houthi militants clashed with tribal forces supported by military units in Sirwah, Ma’rib near the Sana’a-Ma’rib border on April 11-12. An estimated 35 people died in the fighting.[2]

• An airstrike targeted a vehicle carrying suspected al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) militants in Ghaydha, east of al Mukalla, Hadramawt on April 12. An estimated 5-7 militants died in the strike. It is unclear if the airstrike was part of Operation Decisive Storm or a U.S. airstrike.[3]

• Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi appointed Khaled Bahah as the vice president of Yemen on April 12. Many see Bahah as a conciliatory figure across Yemen’s warring parties, and hope that his appointment may lead to negotiations.[4]

Horn of Africa Security Brief

• Police killed two suspected al Shabaab members in a gunfight in Ukanda, Coast province, Kenya on April 11. The two are believed to be connected to a group operating in the area with ties to al Shabaab.[5]