ConflictBarometer_2015

MIDDLE EAST AND MAGHREB
flights to Turkey, and the suspension of the visa-free agreement
with Turkey, starting in January 2016. On December
2, Russia accused Turkey of buying oil from IS-controlled
refineries in Syria and Iraq. The next day, Turkish President
Recep Tayyip Erdogan denied those claims and in turn accused
Russia of being involved in oil trading with IS. okl,
twt
YEMEN (AQAP, ANSAR AL SHARIA)
Intensity: 4 | Change: | Start: 1992
Conflict parties:
Conflict items:
AQAP, Ansar al Sharia vs. government
system/ideology
YEMEN (AQAP AL-HOUTHI)
Intensity: 3 | Change: | Start: 2010
Conflict parties:
Conflict items:
AQAP vs. al-Houthi
system/ideology, subnational predominance
The conflict over ideology and subnational predominance between
al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), also known
as Ansar al-Sharia, on the one hand, and the al-Houthi rebels,
on the other, de-escalated from a limited war to a violent
crisis.
As in 2014, AQAP sporadically joined forces with Sunni tribal
militias to fight widening al-Houthi influence in the southwest
of the country [→ Yemen (al-Houthi Sunni tribal forces)]. For
example, on March 2, AQAP and allied local tribes attacked
al-Houthi militants in Dhi Na'im, al-Bayda Governorate. Reportedly,
18 al-Houthis and seven tribal militants were killed
in the fighting. Also, in mid-October, AQAP militants fought
alongside local Sunni militias, referred to as popular resistance
forces, against al-Houthi militant in Taiz city, the capital
of the eponymous governorate.
On March 27, al-Houthi militants and allied government
troops, reportedly loyal to former president Ali Abdullah
Saleh, clashed with alleged AQAP militants and recaptured
a military base in Bayhan, Shabwah governorate [→ Yemen,
Saudi Arabia (al-Houthi)].
On June 22, AQAP militants clashed with al-Houthi fighters in
al-Zowb, al-Bayda, leaving dozens killed on both sides. The
same day, AQAP conducted a rocket attack on an al-Houthi
gathering in al-Hudayda governorate.
Throughout the year, AQAP continued attacks with car bombs
and IEDs against al-Houthi sites and gatherings in many parts
of the country, mostly in al-Bayda and the capital Sana'a.
For instance, on June 10, AQAP detonated an IED in Shaqra,
Abyan governorate, killing 15 al-Houthi militants. Moreover,
on August 12, AQAP detonated a car bomb at an al-Houthi
gathering in Ataq, Shabwah governorate, reportedly killing
dozens. From October 23 to 25, AQAP carried out seven
attacks against al-Houthi targets in al-Bayda and Sana'a using
guns, IEDs, and a grenade. Between November 18 and
November 30, AQAP conducted another series of attacks on
al-Houthi forces in al-Bayda, using firearms and IEDs. No
casualties were reported in both cases.
In sum, at least 260 people, including civilians, were killed
over the course of the year. jri
The conflict between Ansar al Sharia and Al Qaida on
the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), on the one hand, and the
Hadi government, supported by the US, on the other, deescalated
to a limited war.
On January 1, Ansar al Sharia killed approx. four soldiers
in an IED attack on a military patrol outside of Sayun
city, Hadramawt governorate. Six days later, an AQAP
suicide bomber in a minibus killed around 26 applicants in
front of the local police academy in the capital Sana'a
detonating a vehicle-borne IED (VBIED) next to the queue.
The police arrested five AQAP-affiliated suspects on the
same day. An-other six militants were arrested on
January 14, believed to be responsible for the
assassination of an Abyan Popular Committee leader that
took place the day before. Also on January 14, suspected
Ansar al Sharia militants ambushed a military convoy in
Belhaf, Shabwah governorate, killing three soldiers and
wounding several other. Another military con-voy was
ambushed in al Saeed, eponymous governorate, on January
19. Between January 20 and 23, drive-by shootings by
militants on motorcycles in Hadramawt left five soldiers
and one security officer dead. Militants further destroyed
an Islamic shrine on January 28 in Hawta, Lahij governorate.
Throughout the year, Ansar al Sharia continued to attack
military targets such as a patrols, checkpoints, convoys, and
bases, most of them in the governorates of Hadramawt and
Abyan.
On February 1, militants launched coordinated attacks against
the 117th Infantry Brigade and other security forces in al-
Bayda, leaving three soldiers and four militants dead. On
February 12, Ansar al Sharia fighters seized the base of
the 19th Infantry Brigade in Bayhan, Shabwah. They looted
mili-tary equipment of the camp and kidnapped several
soldiers. IEDs and VBIEDs remained frequently used
weapons of AQAP and Ansar al Sharia. Between February 4
and February 23, militants detonated at least eleven IEDs,
two of them vehicle-borne, in several locations. The
explosions and following gunfights killed approx. 21
people and left more than eight wounded. Later in the
year, Ansar al Sharia used IEDs and VBIEDs to attack
military and civilian targets, including an intelligence
building in al-Hudaydah on October 16 and an attack on
the headquarters of the General People's Congress (GPC)
east of al-Bayda city on December 21.
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