Gulf of Aden Security Review – August 21, 2020

Yemen: Al Houthis claim killing IS in Yemen leader in al Bayda governorate; al Houthi movement leader delivers speech commemorating Islamic New Year; Saudi-led coalition claims intercepting al Houthi explosive UAV and missile launched toward Saudi Arabia; Hadi government–aligned forces clash with al Houthis across multiple governorates

Horn of Africa: AFRICOM kills al Shabaab explosives expert in southern Somalia; al Shabaab ambushes AU base in central Somalia; Somali security officials arrest prison guards following al Shabaab attack on Mogadishu’s central prison

 Yemen Security Brief:

Al Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sare’a claimed al Houthi militants killed the leader of the Islamic State (IS) in Yemen during an operation to clear al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and IS in Yemen militants from territory in central Yemen’s al Bayda governorate. The al Houthi movement claimed clearing AQAP militants from territory during this operation in al Bayda governorate in mid-August.[1]

Al Houthi movement leader Abdul Malik al Houthi delivered a speech on August 20 commemorating the Islamic New Year. Abdul Malik al Houthi praised Iraqi militias targeting the US military and their efforts to remove the US from Iraq. He also denounced the normalization of UAE-Israeli relations. Abdul Malik al Houthi previously delivered a speech in mid-May commemorating Quds Day, an Iranian-initiated annual holiday that expresses solidarity with Palestinians and hostility toward Israel.[2]

A Saudi-led coalition spokesman announced that Saudi Arabia intercepted an al Houthi explosive unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) launched from the Yemeni capital, Sana’a, toward civilian centers in southern Saudi Arabia on August 20. The spokesman also announced that Saudi Arabia intercepted an al Houthi ballistic missile targeting Najran city in southwestern Saudi Arabia that same day. Al Houthi militants reportedly launched an unidentified military projectile targeting a village in southwestern Saudi Arabia on August 17.[3]

Forces aligned with the internationally recognized Yemeni government of Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi reportedly clashed with al Houthi militants in al Jawf, Ma’rib, and al Bayda governorates on August 20. Hadi government forces previously clashed with al Houthi militants in al Jawf, Ma’rib, and al Bayda governorates in mid-August.[4]

Horn of Africa Security Brief:

US Africa Command (AFRICOM) conducted an airstrike targeting an al Shabaab militant in Kurtunwarey in southern Somalia’s Lower Shabelle region on August 20. The airstrike killed an al Shabaab militant known for his bomb-making expertise. AFRICOM currently assesses that no civilian casualties occurred. AFRICOM conducted an airstrike targeting an al Shabaab checkpoint in Lower Shabelle region in early July.[5]

Al Shabaab militants ambushed a military base belonging to Ethiopian African Union forces in Halgan in central Somalia’s Hiraan region on August 20. Somali National Army forces claimed attacking al Shabaab militants in Hiraan region in early March.[6]

Somali security officials arrested twelve prison guards following al Shabaab’s attack on the Somali capital of Mogadishu’s central prison. Al Shabaab inmates acquired weapons and attacked the central prison guards on August 10. Security forces killed four al Shabaab militants, however, one escaped. A committee will investigate the prison guards for suspected negligence of their duties or for possibly aiding the militants.[7]