Armies of Liberation

Thank you. The fisheries have been irking me for years. The numbers do not and never did add up. The diesel smuggling is much clearer, but the level of smuggling and under-reporting on the fisheries is astounding. The black market economy in Yemen is the main wheel of industry. If the massive corruption is what underpins political instability, then dismantling criminal networks is a primary requirement and a job beyond the capacity of SNACC as the political and military elite are the beneficiaries of the current system.

Is this a new Fisheries Minister? He’s taking quite a stand. There were also statements a few weeks ago accurately indicating the level of corruption in the Ministry as well as the industry. Random fisheries factoid, Abdelmajid al Zindani was on the corporate board of the Yemeni Fisheries Company, but it never made any money (very high expenses) and investors lost on the stocks.

Yemen Times SANA’A, Nov. 14- More than 40,000 tons of shrimp and squid were exported illegally from Yemeni coasts during 2008 and 2009, said the Minister of Fishery Wealth, Mohammad Shamlan. (Read on …)

For years, the fishing statistics never added up for me, and finally we have an official recognition of the issue. The figure is 40,000 tons annually or about 20% of total production, but its a rough number. That the statement was made by the Fisheries Minister and published by SABA is encouraging but only to the extent that the corruption is countered in an effective way. There has been public disclosure of many organized criminal activities, but little meaningful efforts to disrupt them after. There are a few potential non-oil industries that could be developed to replace the rapidly depleting oil economy and one of the most important is the fisheries.

SABA 40000 Tons of Yemen Fish Trafficked Annually, Minister Reveals
(Read on …)

Updated to include dates of Iranian warships on “piracy patrols” that landed in Yemen.

Possibly the mystery of the three recent incidents of exploding Yemeni fishing boats can be explained as Iranian missile shipments. The following article asserts Iran is shipping from an African country, likely Sudan, to Yemen. A Yemeni fishing boat also exploded in a Sudanese port and Yemen’s Midi Island is a new transit point for Sudanese refugees. Once there’s a smuggling route established for weapons, the boats often also transport refugees.

However this report is taken from a Yemeni government stooge newspaper, Akhbar al Youm, which once announced that Ayatollah Sistani and I (me Jane) wrote the 2005 Amnesty International report, so there you go… It could be spin but the part that seems truest is that Yemeni government officials facilitated the shipment’s entry to Yemen. Its equally likely the Iranian missiles, if they were off loaded in Yemen, were destined for al Qaeda as the Houthi rebels. The paper is owned by President Saleh’s half brother General Ali Mohsen al Ahmar who is in a perpetual power struggle with other elements of the family. General al Ahmar is tasked with leading the war against the Houthi rebels, and as odd as it seems, a shipload of Chinese weapons was recently imported (with forged documents from the Yemeni defense ministry), thought destined for the Houthi rebels. Its a very fractured government.

Adding some weight to the story is the January 09 incident of Israel bombing an Iranian weapons shipment headed for Gaza from The Sudan, with Yemen noted as a leg of the route. So if Iran is drop shipping weapons to Sudan, from there they could go either direction. Two Iranian warships did dock in Yemen during the time frame referenced (prior to August 09), approved by Yemen’s president. A third fleet docked in September 2009.

Yemen Tribune SANAA, 15 Oct — The pro-government daily newspaper, Akhbar al-Youm Thursday quoted ‘special’ sources as saying “Iran provided the Shiite insurgents in Yemen with advanced anti-armour missiles one month before the sixth round of war erupted between the Zaydi Shiite rebels and government forces in north Yemen.” “The information we obtained revealed the missiles were shipped through the sea via an Iranian vessel that began its journey from an African port,” said Akhbar al-Youm, adding “the Iranian missiles-laden vessel docked near Yemen’s Mydi port in Hajja where smaller boats transferred the missiles to Mydi. The missiles were then moved and stored in farms near Mydi and later were transferred to the rebels through Hajja and Hodeida.” “State officials were involved in the operation and arranged for the Iranian ship to enter Yemeni water territorial,” said Akhbar al-Youm, adding “security agencies arrested several of those officials and investigation is underway.” A few weeks ago, media reports talked about ‘mysterious’ blasts in Mydi port where boats were blown up and Akhbar al-Youm said “the blasts were the result of clashes between the coastguard and individuals aboard those boats who were delivering arms to the Shiite insurgents.”

I was concerned at the time the fishing boats were exploding about a coordinated maritime al Qaeda attack on the NATO fleet in the Gulf of Aden, that is the Yemeni signature, but this convoluted story is much more apt to be likely.

This is the third fishing boat to explode since May. Are they smuggling explosives, fishing with explosives? It is described as a massive explosion. The location is Maydi in Hajjah, near the Saudi border, south of Sa’ada. We earlier noted Maydi (Medi) Island is a new way station for human smuggling from Sudan.

Also note the the port is under the direction of the Border Guards which fall under the Defense Ministry, not the Coast Guard. As earlier noted regarding weapons trafficking, the ports with the highest rates of arms smuggling are those under military control, not the Coast Guard. The Border Guard and the Coast Guard have been involved in several scuffles when the BG interferes in CG efforts to combat smuggling. To the extent that the US is interested in border control, the facilitation of smuggling by aspects of the Yemeni security forces is an important consideration.

al Tagheer: أفادت مصادر مطلعة عن دوي انفجار شديد في ميناء الصيد بمديرية ميدي التابعة لمحافظة حجة صباح الاثنين في حوالي الساعة الرابعة فجرا تضرر فيه ثلاثة قوارب صيد احدهم يتبع ضباط بالجيش ويدعى محمد حنيش. Informed sources said a loud blast in the fishing port MIDI Directorate in the province of argument on Monday morning at about four o’clock am the damaged fishing boats, one of three military officers followed, Mohammed Hanish. (Read on …)

HADRAMOUT, June 19 (Saba) – Yemen says it had seized two fishing boats carrying a huge stash of drugs hidden in 162 bags.

The two boats were apprehended 13 nautical miles off the port of Sher city in the western Hadramout province. Two Africans were seized on one of the boat and five Yemenis were seized on the second boat.

The Africans were a Tanzanian and a Kenyan, ages 35-36, while the five Yemenis were aged 19-52. In May, the Public Prosecution destroyed four tonnes of hashish and six million pills of amphetamines. The drugs quantities were said could sell for over $ 83 million.

About 75 suspects including 47 Yemenis, 12 Pakistanis, 10 Iranians, 2 Syrians, 2 Saudis and a Eritrean and Ethiopian, have faced drugs trafficking and trade charges in the country in recent months.

The trials of some of the suspected drugs traffickers and dealers have been completed with some sentenced to death and others to years in prison. Other trials are still under process.

Very interesting, I’ve been waiting for more Sudan/Yemen news after the Yemeni fishing boat exploded in Sudanese waters and the Yemeni small plane crashed after take-off in the Sudan.

Cars waiting to take them to the Saudi border is well coordinated, indicates good communication and, for human trafficking to Yemen, elaborate. Landing is not the norm. Often the poor refugees get dumped from the boat and swim to shore; no one is waiting. Landing on the islands I think is new also. I wonder what the boats are taking back? Drugs, guns, diesel? Article is from the Yemen Observer:

Yemen’s Medi Island of Hajjah province close to the Saudi borders has become a new passing point for African refugees to the Gulf countries. The past few days witnessed the arrival of large groups said that an anonymous groups of African refugees from different nationalities-Nigerians, Sudanese, Chadian.

The Red Sea has become also the new passing through point for African refugees after it was only confined to Somalis and their fatal trips in the Gulf of Aden.

Yemen’s Coastguards have captured more than 500 Africans while attempting to sneak into the lands of Saudi Arabia. The coastguards also have captured 110 African refugees in the Medi Island after thie arrival on a smuggling boat. Sources at the coastguards said that there were several cars that were waiting for them to carry them to Hardh district located at the Saudi borders to smuggle them into Saudi Arabia. (Read on …)

The network of spotters is interesting, but the several Yemeni ports more so.

Yemen Times: But how did Yemeni fishermen become pirates? The answer was disclosed by the fishermen themselves, who explained that many times they have been kidnapped by Somalis pirates, who use the fishing boats to attack commercial ships. (Read on …)

First of all, lets keep in mind that the report that “a missile” from the international fleet targeted the first Yemeni fishing boat that exploded Tuesday off the coast of the Sudan is entirely unsubstantiated and a product of the Yemeni State Media, which often lies, blatant absurd lies.

In the second case this week, the official story that follows is three fishermen exited the boat at Yemen’s Honey Island (what a nice name!) and triggered a land mine. It could be, or it could be something else like a new trade in more volatile explosives. I haven’t a clue, there are a lot of land mines in Yemen, but one exploding Yemeni fishing boat is odd, two is flakey. Both stories were announced by Saba:
Mine explosion kills two Yemeni fishermen in Red Sea island

HODEIDA, May 28 (Saba) – Two days after a missile hit a Yemeni boat in the Red Sea killing and injuring its crew members, two Yemeni fishermen died on Thursday but this time a landmine explosion was probably behind the catastrophe which took place in the Honey Island near the Yemeni island of Al-Zubair in the Red Sea.

A third Yemeni fisherman was seriously injured and taken to a hospital in Hodeida and he is still in the intensive care unit.

Sources told news websites the boat had a crew of 11, but only three were at the boat when the explosion took place, while the other crew members were preparing a meal.

When the three left their boat in the island, an explosion was heard which preliminary investigations revealed it was a mine detonation killing two and hurting the third.

The two killed were identified as Abdu Ibrahim, 20, and Ahmed Ibrahim,35.

However, speculations arose that the explosion was a missile that targeted the boat, raising fear international troops are aiming to cleanse Yemeni fishermen under the pretext of being suspected pirates.

On Tuesday, a missile, believed to be fired by one of the international naval ships patrolling the region, hit a Yemeni boat killing and injuring its crew members.