Gulf of Aden Security Review - April 24, 2015

Yemen: U.S. officials report that Iranian ships turn away from Yemen; al Houthis clash with tribesmen near Ma’rib city; al Houthis withdraw from Nisab city, Shabwah

Horn of Africa: Al Shabaab executes kidnapped Kenyan police chief in Gedo region; Somali Prime Minister Sharmarke calls for efforts to secure rural areas from al Shabaab

Yemen Security Brief

• U.S. officials reported that the convoy of Iranian ships in the Gulf of Aden allegedly carrying weapons to resupply the al Houthi movement in Yemen changed course on April 23. The U.S. Navy had deployed naval vessels to the Gulf of Aden earlier in the week in response to the presence of the Iranian ships.[1]

• Al Houthi militants clashed with tribesmen and Islah party militants near Ma’rib city, Ma’rib on April 23. The al Houthis have advanced in Ma’rib despite being targeted by ongoing Saudi-led coalition airstrikes in the governorate.[2]

• Al Houthi militants reportedly withdrew from Nisab city, Shabwah, after several days of clashes with popular resistance fighters in the area. An estimated 47 people died in the fighting for control of the city.[3]

Horn of Africa Security Brief

• Al Shabaab executed a kidnapped Kenyan police chief near Bardhere, Gedo region on April 23. The group had kidnapped the chief in Arabia, North Eastern Province, Kenya earlier the same day and had demanded a ransom for his release. When negotiations broke down, the militants shot him.[4]

• Somali Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke said that efforts were underway to reclaim rural areas in southern Somalia from al Shabaab. Without giving any timeline for operations, the prime minister said that al Shabaab had been using areas as a launching pad for attacks in both Kenya and Somalia and that the areas had to be secured.[5]