Escalation of U.S. Terror Operations in Central and Eastern Yemen

On February 12, a passenger vehicle was struck by an unidentified drone along the coast of the city of Al-Ghaydah, the capital of Al-Mahrah province. As a result of the attack, one or two unidentified individuals were killed. It is believed that one of them may have been a Somali national with a background in either Al-Qaeda or ISIS. A Yemeni source identified the two individuals as Abdullah Abdulrazzaq, originally from Somalia, and Mohammed al-Hammami, a resident of Sana’a.

Images released by local sources indicate that the missile used in the strike was a Ninja missile (AGM-114 Hellfire), reportedly deployed by U.S. drones. The United States uses this missile in highly specific targeted operations. Previously, it had only been employed in assassinations in Syria and in one case in Lebanon. Therefore, this marks the first reported use of the Ninja missile in U.S. operations in Yemen.

U.S. drones also conducted two additional operations in Marib province on 25 January and 4 February, though official details have not been released. According to local sources, the first strike involved three missiles fired at a house in the Al-Kharashi area north of Marib city, killing three Al-Qaeda members from the Al-Qayfa area in Al-Bayda province. The second attack targeted a gathering of four Al-Qaeda members — Idris al-Masri, Abu Saleh Ibrahim al-Banna, Battar al-San’ani, Homam al-San’ani, and the son of Khaled Batarfi — in the Arq Al Shabwan area northeast of Marib city.

According to statistics reported by Western media regarding U.S. airstrikes in Yemen over the past two decades, more than 390 operations have been carried out against Al-Qaeda members in the country.

The pace of U.S. air operations in Yemen over the past three months has increased significantly compared to the previous two years, including the period following the inauguration of Donald Trump. Over the last three months alone, seven operations have been conducted — six in Marib and one in Al-Mahrah. In terms of timing, one operation took place in November, three in December, and three up to February 12. Since the beginning of these operations — marked by the assassination of Abu Ali al-Harithi on November 5, 2002 — the stated objective of the United States has been to counter Al-Qaeda activities. Since then, more than 1,600 individuals have reportedly been killed under this pretext.