Yemen: The US and Royal Navies interdicted Iranian arms bound for the Houthis

Somalia: Kenya, Ethiopia, and Djibouti to send additional troops into Somalia for offensive operations within eight weeks; al Shabaab mortars Villa Somalia; al Shabaab IED kills two police officers

Yemen Security Brief:

US Naval Forces Central Command said it supported a Royal Navy interdiction of Iranian weapons bound for Yemen on February 23 in the Gulf of Oman with airborne intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance.[i] The Royal Navy recovered Iranian ballistic missile components and Kornet anti-tank guided missiles. 

Somalia Security Brief:

The Somali national security advisor announced on March 2 that Kenya, Ethiopia, and Djibouti will be sending more troops to Somalia to participate in offensive operations within eight weeks.[ii] The Somali national security advisor did not disclose the total number of troops but said they would be independent of the countries’ pre-existing African Union forces and be jointly under the command of the Somali security forces.[iii] The leaders of the three countries agreed to deploy additional soldiers to participate in “search and destroy” operations during a summit in Mogadishu on February 1.[iv] The national security advisor said these joint operations would be the second phase of the government’s counterterrorism offensive after the first phase culminated in central Somalia in January 2023.[v]

Al Shabaab mortared Villa Somalia, Wardhigley district, Mogadishu, on March 2.[vi] Stray mortars killed two civilians and injured six others.[vii]

Al Shabaab detonated an improvised explosive device targeting a Somali police vehicle in Mogadishu’s Karaan district on March 2.[viii] The explosion killed two policemen.


[i] US Naval Forces Central Command, Twitter, March 2, 2023, https://twitter.com/US5thFleet/status/1631170142490034179?s=20.

[ii] Harun Maruf, “Somalia's Neighbors to Send Additional Troops to Fight Al-Shabab,” Voice of America, March 2, 2023, https://www.voanews.com/a/somalia-s-neighbors-to-send-additional-troops-to-fight-al-shabab-/6986748.html.

[iii] Harun Maruf, “Somalia's Neighbors to Send Additional Troops to Fight Al-Shabab.”

[iv] Brian Carter, Kathryn Tyson, Liam Karr, and Peter Mills, “Salafi-Jihadi Movement Weekly Update, February 8, 2023,” Critical Threats Project at the American Enterprise Institute, February 9, 2023, https://www.criticalthreats.org/analysis/salafi-jihadi-movement-weekly-update-february-8-2023

[v] Harun Maruf, “Somalia's Neighbors to Send Additional Troops to Fight Al-Shabab”; Brian Carter, Kathryn Tyson, Liam Karr, and Peter Mills, “Salafi-Jihadi Movement Weekly Update, January 18, 2023,” Critical Threats Project at the American Enterprise Institute, January 19, 2023, https://www.criticalthreats.org/analysis/salafi-jihadi-movement-weekly-update-january-18-2023; Liam Karr, Kathryn Tyson, and Peter Mills, “Salafi-Jihadi Movement Weekly Update, January 25, 2023,” Critical Threats Project at the American Enterprise Institute, January 26, 2023, https://www.criticalthreats.org/analysis/salafi-jihadi-movement-weekly-update-january-25-2023.

[vi] Hussein Mohamed, @HusseinM12, Twitter, March 2, 2023, https://twitter.com/HussienM12/status/1631257151946518529?s=20.

[vii] Hussein Mohamed, @HusseinM12, Twitter, March 2, 2023, https://twitter.com/HussienM12/status/1631280885604442113?s=20.

[viii] Hussein Mohamed, @HusseinM12, Twitter, March 2, 2023, https://twitter.com/HussienM12/status/1631182990981189635?s=20.

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