Gulf of Aden Security Review - October 7, 2019

Yemen: Saudi Arabia considering ceasefire in Yemen; Hadi government and STC close to deal over Aden; al Houthi movement claims missile strike on Sudanese soldiers in Taiz governorate

Horn of Africa: Jubbaland Security Forces clear al Shabaab villages near Kismayo; Djiboutian troops clash with Somali regional police in Hiraan region; Somali militiamen capture al Shabaab camp in Hiraan region

Yemen Security Brief

Saudi Arabia’s Vice Minister of Defense, Prince Khalid bin Salman, stated on October 3 that Saudi Arabia views an al Houthi ceasefire offer positively and that Saudi Arabia is open to a political solution in Yemen. Saudi officials have opened backchannel negotiations with the President of the al Houthi Supreme Political Council, Mahdi al Mashat, according to Reuters. The al Houthi movement offered a ceasefire on September 20, but both sides have continued military operations since then.[1]

President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi’s government and the Transitional Political Council for the South (STC), a southern Yemeni secessionist group, are close to signing an agreement that would end a conflict over control of Yemen’s de facto capital, Aden, according to Reuters. STC-aligned forces seized Aden from Hadi government-aligned forces in August. The two sides have since clashed in multiple locations in southern Yemen. Saudi Arabia is in the process of a brokering an agreement that would have the STC join the Yemeni government and would have Saudi forces temporarily take control of Aden.[2]

The al Houthi movement claimed to kill multiple Sudanese soldiers in a rocket attack in Taiz governorate in southwestern Yemen on October 4. Sudan has been part of the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen since 2015.[3]

Horn of Africa Security Brief

Jubbaland Security Forces claimed to clear multiple al Shabaab-held villages in the Abdale Birole area approximately 30 miles southwest of Kismayo, the capital of Jubbaland State in southern Somalia, on October 7. Security forces killed 20 al Shabaab militants, including multiple commanders.[4]

Djiboutian forces serving under the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) clashed with Somali regional police in Jalalaqsi district in Hiraan region in central Somalia on October 6. The clashes began after police refused to sever telecommunications services in advance of a Djiboutian landmine clearing operation. Djiboutian troops seized the Jalalaqsi police station during the clashes.[5]

The Somali Ma’awisley militia ambushed an al Shabaab camp in El Ali village in Hiraan region on October 3. The militia killed five militants and captured the camp.[6]

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