Aden (South24 Center)

Six members of the Southern Resistance and their civilian supporters were wounded on Thursday (October 22) in clashes with Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) militants in Markhah Al-Sufla District of Shabwa Governorate, South Yemen, military sources told South24 Center.

The sources said the clashes erupted as a Southern Resistance battalion advanced toward areas along the border between Shabwa and Al-Bayda governorates in an attempt to outflank positions held by the Iran-aligned Houthi militia. AQAP militants subsequently attacked the advancing forces, triggering armed confrontations.

According to the sources, the fighting took place in the Khourat area, leaving six Southern Resistance members and their civilian supporters wounded, along with two AQAP militants.

The attack comes amid escalating military operations in Shabwa and neighboring areas of Al-Bayda, as fighting continues between the Houthis and anti-Houthi forces on several fronts.

Shabwa Governor Awadh Mohammed bin al-Wazir said in remarks to Al Arabiya on Tuesday (October 20) that security forces had arrested cells comprising AQAP members who, according to him, were cooperating with the Houthis inside the governorate.

He said investigations had revealed that some of these cells had obtained landmines, explosives and equipment from the Houthis, adding that the authorities possessed audio and video evidence and documents concerning the alleged cooperation, although these have not yet been made public.

In a 2023 research paper, South24 Center examined AQAP's sources of weapons in Yemen, including its use of drones against Shabwa Defense Forces. The paper suggested that the group may have obtained some of these capabilities from the Houthis, while not ruling out other sources.

The paper cited several indications, including confessions by AQAP members whom Shabwa Defense Forces said they had apprehended.

In its 2025 annual report, South24 Center documented seven AQAP attacks targeting Southern forces in Shabwa, killing three soldiers and wounding four others, compared with three attacks recorded in the governorate in 2024.

Across Abyan, Shabwa and Hadramout, the center recorded 31 AQAP attacks between the beginning of 2025 and December 15, killing 23 Southern forces personnel and wounding 47 others.

In October 2024, Lieutenant Colonel Ahmed Mohsen al-Sulaimani, Chief of Staff of the 1st Shabwa Defense Brigade, was killed in a mortar attack on a military position held by his forces in the Al-Masainah area. AQAP claimed responsibility for the attack.

The latest incident comes three days after three Houthi ballistic missiles struck the Martyr Ahmed al-Sulaimani Training Center, also known as Al-Alam Camp, in Shabwa's Jardan District on Monday (October 19). The attack killed 73 security recruits and wounded more than 200 others, while 14 people remained missing, according to the latest casualty figures announced by the local authorities on Tuesday.