Gulf of Aden Security - May 5, 2020

Yemen: AQAP releases video lecture on Ramadan; Hadi government forces reportedly shoot down al Houthi aircraft in Dhaleh governorate; Hadi government forces claim repelling al Houthi advances in al Hudaydah governorate

Horn of Africa: Al Shabaab executes alleged spy in central Somalia; Mandera County’s governor announces alternative method for transporting COVID-19 test samples due to concerns over al Shabaab’s presence in northeastern Kenya

Yemen Security Brief:

Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula’s (AQAP) media foundation, al Malahem, released a religious lecture on Ramadan on April 26. An AQAP religious official gave a speech extolling the virtues of fasting during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan and the month’s significance as a period of “conquests” in Islamic history, urging AQAP fighters to “invade the enemies of Allah.” AQAP previously released a statement on May 2 condemning India’s December 2019 Citizenship Amendment Act.[1]

Forces aligned with the internationally recognized Yemeni government of Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi reportedly shot down an al Houthi aircraft in Maris district in Dhaleh governorate in southern Yemen on May 5. Al Houthi militants claimed causing over 50 Hadi government force causalities during clashes in Dhaleh governorate on April 20.[2]

Hadi government forces claimed repelling multiple al Houthi attacks in al Hudaydah governorate in western Yemen on May 5. Hadi government forces reporting causing significant al Houthi causalities and seizing military equipment. Hadi government forces reportedly repelled an al Houthi attack in Saleh city in al Hudaydah governorate on April 28.[3]

Horn of Africa Security Brief:

Al Shabaab publicly executed a man in Adan Yabal district in Middle Shabelle region in central Somalia on May 3. Al Shabaab accused the man of spying for the US Central Intelligence Agency and military. Al Shabaab reportedly executed three alleged spies in Somalia’s Galgudud region on April 28.[4]

The governor of Mandera County in eastern Kenya announced that county administrative officials would not be sending COVID-19 test samples by road to Wajir County due to al Shabaab’s presence across the counties. The governor claimed that al Shabaab plants explosive devices along the road linking the two counties to target government and private vehicles, expressing concern over the possible loss of ambulances. He stated that the Kenyan government will instead be sending a plane to pick up the testing samples to deliver them to a testing site in Kenya’s capital Nairobi. There are at least 19 quarantined individuals in Mandera County awaiting their COVID-19 test results.[5]