Gulf of Aden Security Review – June 22, 2020

Yemen: STC forces take control of Socotra island; Hadi government forces clash with al Houthi militants in al Bayda governorate; Hadi government forces attack al Houthis in al Jawf governorate

Horn of Africa: Al Shabaab IED attack targets SNA commander’s home in southern Somalia; al Shabaab IED attack kills at least two SNA soldiers in central Somalia; SNA soldiers protest unpaid wages in Mogadishu

Yemen Security Brief:

The Transitional Political Council of the South (STC) announced that it took control of Socotra, a Yemeni archipelago in the Gulf of Aden, from the internationally recognized Yemeni government of Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi on June 20. STC forces deposed Socotra’s governor and drove Hadi government forces from the archipelago. STC forces reportedly took control of a Hadi government building in Socotra’s capital Hidaybu on June 19. The STC declared self-rule in southern Yemen in late April in an attempt to displace Hadi’s government.[1]

Hadi government forces clashed with al Houthi militants in Qaniya district in central Yemen’s al Bayda governorate, following the arrival of Hadi government and tribal reinforcements on June 21. The al Houthi movement reportedly took control of al Bayda governorate’s Radman al Awad district from local tribes on June 19.[2]

Hadi government forces, supported by Saudi-led coalition airstrikes, reportedly attacked al Houthi militants in northern Yemen’s al Jawf governorate. Hadi government forces claimed attacking al Houthi militants in al Jawf governorate’s Khub wa al Shaf district on June 19. UN Special Envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths denounced on June 21 the continued military escalations in Yemen, especially in al Jawf and Ma’rib governorates.[3]

Horn of Africa Security Brief:

Two al Shabaab improvised explosive devices (IEDs) targeted a Somali National Army (SNA) commander’s home in Wanlaweyn town in southern Somalia’s Lower Shabelle region on June 20, killing five people. The attack did not kill the commander, who was not home at the time of the attack. The attack killed his wife, however. SNA forces killed an al Shabaab IED expert in Wanlaweyn in January.[4]

Three al Shabaab militants conducted a suicide vehicle-borne IED (VBIED) attack, targeting an SNA checkpoint in Ba’adweyne town in central Somalia’s Galmudug region on June 21. The attack killed at least two SNA soldiers. SNA-backed Galmudug State security forces killed an al Shabaab IED expert in northern Somalia’s Mudug region in mid-May.[5]

SNA forces blocked roads leading to government offices in Somalia’s capital Mogadishu on June 21, protesting months on unpaid salaries. The Somali government responded to similar concerns last year by paying soldiers directly through banks to prevent corrupt commanders from pocketing some of the salaries.[6]