Gulf of Aden Security Review - December 10, 2013 | Critical Threats

Yemen: Dutch journalist freed; Japan donates $5.6 million; U.S. Charge d’Affaires in Sana’a

Horn of Africa: Kenya creates new command to fight terrorism; explosives recovered in Kismayo; hand grenade attack kills one in Afgoi, Lower Shabelle

Yemen Security Brief

• The Dutch government reported the release of a reporter and her partner, who were both kidnapped in Yemen on June 8. Both were released unharmed.[1]

• Saba News Agency reported a contribution of $5.6 million targeted specifically for, “food-insecure IDPs” in Yemen by Japan. A ceremony took place in Sana’a to mark Japan’s contributions, which have totaled nearly $30 million.[2]

• U.S. Charge d’Affaires in Yemen, Karen Sasahara, met with Chief of General Staff Major General Ahmed Ali al Ashwal in Sana’a on December 9. The two discussed the ongoing cooperation between the U.S. and Yemen, and the U.S. continued support for the Yemeni transition. Sasahara offered her condolences on behalf of the attacks on the Defense Ministry.[3]

Horn of Africa Security Brief

• Militants ambushed a Kenyan police patrol near Kulan along the Dadaab-Liboi road near the Kenya-Somalia border. The gunmen killed at least eight people, including five police officers. Two officers have been reported missing.[4]

• Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta established the Nairobi Metropolitan Command within the Kenyan Defense Forces on December 9. The new command is responsible for emerging security threats in Kenya.[5]

• Jubba Administration security forces recovered over 200 explosive devices in Via Afmadow neighborhood of Kismayo city in Lower Jubba region on December 9. Jubba Security and Internal Affairs Minister Mohamed Warsame Darwish reported that the explosives included bombs, landmines, and hand grenades.[6]

• A hand grenade attack in Afgoi district in Lower Shabelle region killed a woman and injured two other people on December 9. The motive for the attack is not known.[7]      

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[1] “Dutch: Kidnapped Reporter, 1 Other Freed in Yemen,” AP, December 10, 2013. Available: http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/dutch-kidnapped-reporter-freed-yemen-21159414

[2] “Japan provides US $5.6 million to food-insecure IDPs in Yemen,” Saba News Agency, December 10, 2013. Available: http://www.sabanews.net/en/news334191.htm

[3] “US Confirms its support to security, stability and unity in Yemen,” Saba News Agency, December 9, 2013. Available: http://www.sabanews.net/en/news334054.htm

[4] “Five Police Among Eight People Killed in Somalia Border Ambush,” The Standard, December 10, 2013. Available: http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/?articleID=2000099823&story_title=five-police-among-eight-people-killed-in-somalia-border-ambush

[5] “President Uhuru Kenyatta Creates New KDF Command to Fight Terrorism,” The Standard, December 9, 2013. Available: http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/?articleID=2000099772&story_title=uhuru-creates-new-kdf-command-to-fight-terrorism

[6] “Security Forces Recover over 200 Explosives in Kismayu,” Bar Kulan, December 10, 2013. Available:http://www.bar-kulan.com/2013/12/10/security-forces-recover-over-200-explosives-in-kismayu/

[7] “Grenade Attack Kills One Woman in Afgoye,” Bar Kulan, December 9, 2013. Available: http://www.bar-kulan.com/2013/12/09/grenade-attack-kills-one-woman-in-afgoye/

French Soldiers Killed in Central African Republic

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Scientists Study Long Term Impact of Roadside Bombings On Canadian Afghan Veterans’ Brains | Ottawa Citizen

his article is from the Canadian Press:

CALGARY — The long-term impact of roadside bombings on the brains of Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan is the focus of two research projects underway in Western Canada.

“In recent years, encounters with improvised explosive devices or IEDs in Afghanistan have inflicted traumatic brain injury on a number of Canadian soldiers,” said Dr. Robert Thirsk, a former Canadian astronaut who is now a vice-president with the Canadian Institute of Health Research.

“The impact of these blasts may not be immediately apparent. Months after the event the soldiers can suffer from the neurological problems and the mental disorders like anxiety that we’re reading about in the newspapers. These weapons may be improvised, but our response to them needs to be strategic.”

Dr. Yu Tian Wang of the Brain Research Center at the University of British Columbia is looking at the biological changes that occur in the brain at the cellular level following an injury by an explosive device.
Wang is studying whether a drug can reduce the death and dysfunction of brain cells following injury.

“We know that during traumatic brain injuries some synaptic connections become weakened and the information from one neuron to another is slowed down,” Wang said. “Now we know the underlying reason is due to a particular memory surface protein being reduced.”

Wang said an injection of peptides could provide protection to brain cells before a blast and possibly help repair damage if given immediately after an explosion.

“Obviously if you give it before, it’s best. If you give it early, the rescue is more dramatic.” Wang said. “We’re testing now to see if it works after injuries and how long after injury it can be given.”

In another project, Dr. Ibolja Cernak from the University of Alberta is researching the link between damage to the cerebellum — the motor control centre at the back of the brain — and the chronic balance, memory and behavioural problems that are brought on by blasts.

It’s hoped the research may lead to new therapies and can identify soldiers who are at the greatest risk for developing neurological and mental disorders associated with blast exposure.
“Very often, the soldiers are exposed to multiple low-intensity blasts. They just shrug with their shoulders, but the problem with that is low- intensity blast exposures very often can cause damage in accumulated ways and cause degeneration in the brain,” said Cernak, who holds the Canadian Military and Veterans chair in clinical rehabilitation at the University of Alberta.

Cernak is exposing mice to repeated blasts to determine the actual degeneration. She said blast-induced concussions are much different than would been seen in something such as a hockey injury.
It’s possible soldiers are feeling effects just by being present during training exercises where explosions and artillery are being tested. Often soldiers do not even realize they’ve being affected, Cernak said.

“In low-intensity blasts they often just feel a pressure change like a wind on the face and that’s it. There are so many blasts during a bomb deployment