East Africa
is bracing for a security fallout from the war in Yemen
Saudi-led
coalition airstrikes against Houthi Shi’ite rebels in Yemen are underway and
experts say the security risk to East Africa will rise as a result.
A growing list of nations are evacuating their citizens from Yemen and the
fighting is expected to spark an exodus of refugees with many of them destined for
Eritrea, Djibouti and Somalia’s autonomous regions.
Yemeni
refugees have already begun landing in the Somali coastal town of Berbera.
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| Shi'ite Muslim rebels protest in Sanaa against Saudi led airstrikes |
Security analysts says the power vacuum in Yemen makes is possible for terrorist
groups to expand operations because smaller trade routes and illegal entry
points that were previously policed by the national government in Sana'a are no
longer being monitored.
This situation increases the potential for
access to weapons, and the effectiveness of groups like al-Shabab to operate in
Somalia, Kenya and neighboring countries.