| Yemen Province | |
|---|---|
|
ولاية اليمن (Wilayah al-Yaman) Participant in the Yemeni Civil War | |
 The Black Standard. | |
| Active | 13 November 2014–present |
| Ideology |
Salafist Islamism Salafist Jihadism |
| Leaders |
Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi (Leader of ISIL) Abu Bilal al-Harbi[1] |
| Area of operations |
 Yemen |
| Strength | 300 (June 2015)[2] |
| Part of |
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant |
| Allies |
 Qatar (accused by Saudi Arabia and allies) (denied) [3] |
| Opponents |
State opponents
Non-state opponents |
| Battles/wars | Yemeni Civil War |
The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant – Yemen Province (Arabic language: الدولة الإسلامية في العراق والشام – ولاية اليَمَن, ad-Dawlah al-Islāmiyah fī 'l-ʿIrāq wa-sh-Shām – Wilayah al-Yaman), or ISIL-YP, is a branch of the militant Islamist group Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), active in Yemen. ISIL announced the group's formation on 13 November 2014.[6][7]
Organization[]
Yemen Province's organizational structure is divided into geographical based sub-units. There are at least eight known sub-provinces active in Yemen as of 2015, many named after existing administrative divisions of Yemen:[8]
- Wilayah Sana’a – around Yemen's capital of the same name
- Wilayah Aden-Abyan – around the Aden Governorate
- Wilayah Lahij – in the Lahij Governorate
- Wilayah Green Brigade – in the southwestern governorates of Ibb and Taiz
- Wilayah al-Bayda – in the central Al Bayda Governorate
- Wilayah Shabwah – in the eastern Shabwah Governorate
- Wilayah Ataq – around the city of Ataq
- Wilayah Hadramawt – in the large eastern Hadhramaut Governorate
At least seven separate sub-wilayah have claimed responsibility for attacks in Yemen, including Wilayah Sana’a, Wilayah Lahij, and Wilayah al-Bayda.[9][10]
Background[]
On 13 November 2014, ISIL announced that a branch of the group had been established in Yemen, following pledges of allegiance made by unidentified militants in the country. al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), the strongest militant group in the country, rejected this establishment.[6][11] By December of that year, ISIL had begun to build an active presence inside Yemen, and its recruitment drive brought it into direct competition with AQAP.[12][13] The branch's first attack occurred in March 2015, when it carried out suicide bombings on 2 Shia Mosques in the Yemeni capital.[1][14] In the following months it continued to carry out attacks aimed largely at civilian targets associated with the Shia Houthi movement.[2]
The group has been able to attract recruits by appealing to heightened sectarianism in the country following the outbreak of the Yemeni Civil War in 2015.[10] It has received a number of defectors from al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, who are drawn by the group's money and its ability to carry out regular attacks against the Houthis. This has led to increased tensions with AQAP, although the two sides had avoided clashes as of late 2015.[2][15]
On 6 October 2015, ISIL militants conducted a series of suicide bombings in Aden that killed 15 soldiers affiliated with the Hadi government and the Saudi-led coalition.[4] The attacks were directed against the al-Qasr hotel, which had been a headquarters for pro-Hadi officials, and also military facilities.[4] The group carried out further attacks against pro-Hadi forces, including the December 2015 assassination of Aden's governor.[16] The group experienced a major split in the same month, when dozens of its members, including military and religious leaders, publicly rejected ISIL's leader in Yemen for perceived violations of Sharia. ISIL's central command condemned the dissenters, accusing them of violating their pledge to al-Baghdadi.[17][18] A member of AQAP claimed in early 2016 that about 30 members of ISIL in Yemen had recently defected to his organisation, unhappy with the group's tactics and targeting of mosques and Muslim civilians.[19] On 15 May 2016, ISIL militants claimed responsibility for a suicide attack that killed 25 police recruits in the city of Mukalla in southern Yemen. AQAP was forced out of the city in April by the Saudi-led coalition.[20]
Designation as a terrorist organization[]
| Country | Date | References |
 United States
|
19 May 2016 | [21] |
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Gregory D. Johnsen (7 July 2015). "This Man Is The Leader In ISIS’s Recruiting War Against Al-Qaeda In Yemen". Buzzfeed. https://www.buzzfeed.com/gregorydjohnsen/this-man-is-the-leader-in-isis-recruiting-war-against-al-qae#.pvvgvZz5n. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "In Yemen chaos, Islamic State grows to rival al Qaeda". 30 June 2015. https://www.reuters.com/article/2015/06/30/us-yemen-security-islamicstate-insight-idUSKCN0PA1T920150630. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
- ↑ Patrick Goodenough (5 June 2017). "Arab States Accuse Qatar, a US Ally, of Supporting Terrorism". CNS News. http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/patrick-goodenough/five-gulf-states-accuse-qatar-supporting-terrorists. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 "Islamic State claims suicide attacks on Yemeni government, Gulf troops". 6 October 2015. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-aden-hotel/islamic-state-kills-22-in-attacks-on-yemen-government-gulf-troops-mosque-idUSKCN0S009E20151006. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
- ↑ Adam Taylor (3 November 2015). "Al-Qaeda dispute with Isis devolves to name-calling". The Independent. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/al-qaeda-dispute-with-isis-devolves-to-name-calling-a6719001.html. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Aaron Y. Zelin (28 January 2015). "The Islamic State’s model". The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/monkey-cage/wp/2015/01/28/the-islamic-states-model/. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
- ↑ "Islamic State leader urges attacks in Saudi Arabia: speech". 13 November 2014. https://www.reuters.com/article/2014/11/13/us-mideast-crisis-baghdadi-idUSKCN0IX1Y120141113. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
- ↑ Joshua Koontz (6 May 2015). "Desknote: The Growing Threat of ISIS in Yemen". American Enterprise Institute. http://www.criticalthreats.org/yemen/koontz-desknote-growing-threat-isis-in-yemen-may-6-2015. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
- ↑ "ISIS Global Intelligence Summary March 1 – May 7, 2015". Institute for the Study of War. 10 May 2015. http://www.understandingwar.org/sites/default/files/ISIS%20INTSUM_Final.pdf. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Brian M. Perkins (7 August 2015). "Wilayat al-Yemen: The Islamic State’s New Front". Institute for the Study of War. http://www.jamestown.org/single/?tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=44263&tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=7&cHash=901fe285861b27a174a00d29ee3b71ac#.VhIaJ_mqpBd. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
- ↑ "Islamic State builds on al-Qaeda lands". BBC News. 30 January 2015. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-31064300. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
- ↑ Brian Todd (21 January 2015). "ISIS gaining ground in Yemen, competing with al Qaeda". http://edition.cnn.com/2015/01/21/politics/isis-gaining-ground-in-yemen/. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
- ↑ "Yemeni Al-Qaeda leader hails ISIS gains in Iraq". 13 August 2014. http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2014/08/13/Yemeni-Al-Qaeda-leader-hails-ISIS-gains-in-Iraq.html. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
- ↑ "Yemen crisis: Islamic State claims Sanaa mosque attacks". 20 March 2015. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-31989844. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
- ↑ "Seven killed in Islamic State suicide bombing in Yemeni capital". 6 October 2015. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-blast/seven-killed-in-islamic-state-suicide-bombing-in-yemeni-capital-idUSKCN0S02CV20151006. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
- ↑ "Yemen conflict: Governor of Aden killed in Islamic State attack". BBC News. 6 December 2015. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-35019302. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
- ↑ Thomas Joscelyn; Bill Roggio (23 December 2015). "Divisions emerge within the Islamic State’s Yemen ‘province’". Long War Journal. http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2015/12/divisions-emerge-within-the-islamic-states-yemen-province.php. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
- ↑ "More Islamic State members reject governor of Yemen Province". Long War Journal. 28 December 2015. http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2015/12/more-islamic-state-members-reject-governor-of-yemen-province.php. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
- ↑ "ISIS Fails to Gain Much Traction in Yemen". The Wall Street Journal. 28 March 2016. https://www.wsj.com/articles/isis-fails-to-gain-much-traction-in-yemen-1459203675. Retrieved 28 September 2017.(subscription required)
- ↑ "Yemen conflict: IS suicide attack kills 25 police recruits" (in en-GB). BBC News. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-36295616. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
- ↑ "Terrorist Designations of ISIL-Yemen, ISIL-Saudi Arabia, and ISIL-Libya". State.gov. 19 May 2016. https://www.state.gov/j/ct/rls/other/des/266495.htm. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
The original article can be found at Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant – Yemen Province and the edit history here.