Aden (South24 Center)

Two security sources told the South24 Center on June 18 that Ali Al-Kharashi Al-Maarabi, a senior leader of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), had escaped from the Central Prison in Al-Ghaydah, the capital of Al-Mahra Governorate in eastern South Yemen, in an incident that has raised questions about the circumstances of his escape.

The sources said Al-Kharashi had previously been handed over to security services in Al-Mahra through the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol), in coordination with the Sultanate of Oman, after fleeing there over accusations related to his affiliation with AQAP and his involvement in the killing of a local resident in Al-Mahra.

Local sources said the escape was followed by a security alert and field operations to search for the fugitive leader.

Activists claimed that Al-Kharashi was smuggled out of Al-Ghaydah prison toward Wadi Hadhramaut with the assistance of the Saudi-backed Yemeni Emergency Forces. However, no official comment has been issued by the Ministry of Interior or the Al-Mahra Security Administration regarding these claims, and the South24 Center has not been able to independently verify them.

The incident comes amid growing security concerns in Al-Mahra, a border governorate that has repeatedly appeared in cases linked to smuggling routes, cross-border movement, and extremist networks. The governorate’s location along the border with the Sultanate of Oman and near maritime routes in the Arabian Sea has made it a sensitive security corridor during Yemen’s long-running conflict.

The incident also comes months after the killing of Abdul Shakour Yahya Ali, a Somali figure linked to Al-Shabaab, in a drone strike that targeted his vehicle in Al-Ghaydah.

Security reports at the time pointed to possible links with smuggling and arms-trafficking networks operating across the Gulf of Aden between Yemen and the Horn of Africa.

The escape also comes amid security shifts in Al-Mahra since early January, following the withdrawal of Southern forces affiliated with the Southern Transitional Council (STC) from the governorate. This was accompanied by concerns among local actors over the possible expansion of smuggling networks and extremist activity in the border province.

Over the past months, Al-Mahra has emerged in a number of security cases linked to border crossings and suspected smuggling operations.

On October 29, 2025, security services at the Sarfeet border crossing arrested Nazih Al-Azibi, one of the most prominent aides to the wanted security figure Amjad Khaled, who is accused of involvement in wide-ranging terrorist acts in Aden. Al-Azibi was arrested while arriving from the Sultanate of Oman in possession of three million Saudi riyals.

Prior to that, on July 8, 2025, Houthi figure Mohammed Al-Zaydi was detained at the same crossing while attempting to leave Yemen for the Sultanate of Oman using a diplomatic passport issued by the internationally unrecognized authorities in Sanaa.

On October 29, 2025, the tribes of Hadhramaut and Al-Mahra announced in a joint statement the signing of a “covenant and charter” criminalizing the smuggling of weapons and drugs and prohibiting cooperation with the Houthis or support for terrorist groups.