Gulf of Aden Security Review - November 4, 2019

Yemen: Islamic State in Yemen pledges allegiance to new Caliph; Socotra civilians protest UAE; suspected US drone strike kills two AQAP suspects

Horn of Africa: Islamic State in Somalia pledges allegiance to new Caliph; SFG deploys additional troops to Galmudug State amid clashes with militia; unidentified aircraft target al Shabaab militants in Bay and Middle Jubba regions; al Shabaab detonates IED in Lower Shabelle region

Yemen Security Brief

The Islamic State in Yemen pledged allegiance to the new Caliph of the Islamic State, Abu Ibrahim al Hashimi al Qurayshi, following the death of Islamic State Caliph Abu Bakr al Baghdadi in an October 26 US special operations raid in Syria. Islamic State media outlets published photos of Islamic State fighters in Yemen pledging allegiance to Abu Ibrahim on November 4.[1]

Residents in Socotra archipelago in the Gulf of Aden held a protest against the UAE on November 3. The protests began after members of the UAE-backed Transitional Political Council for the South (STC), a southern Yemeni secessionist group, attempted to seize government buildings on the archipelago’s main island on October 30.[2]

A suspected US drone strike killed two suspected members of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), brothers Khamis bin Afraj and Turki bin Afraj, in Ma’rib governorate in northern Yemen on November 2.[3]

Horn of Africa Security Brief

The Islamic State in Somalia pledged allegiance to the new Caliph of the Islamic State, Abu Ibrahim al Hashimi al Qurayshi, on November 3.[4]

The Somali Federal Government (SFG) deployed additional security forces to Dhusamareb, the capital of Galmudug State in north-central Somalia, on November 4 ahead of state elections. Security forces separately took control of Guriel town, located 30 miles southwest of Dhusamareb, following a brief clash with members of the Sufi militia Ahlu Sunna wa al Jama’a (ASWJ). The SFG previously deployed forces to Dhusamareb on October 26. The SFG and Galmudug administration are deadlocked in a dispute over election oversight.[5]

Unidentified aircraft conducted airstrikes separately targeting al Shabaab militants in the Bulla Falay area in Bay region in southern Somalia and in Jilib district in Middle Jubba region in southern Somalia on November 3. The airstrikes killed several militants, including senior officials. Somali National Army (SNA) troops conducted operations in Jilib district following the airstrikes.[6]

Al Shabaab militants detonated an improvised explosive device (IED) at an aid distribution point in Qoryoley town in Lower Shabelle region in southern Somalia on November 3. The IED wounded at least six people.[7]

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