A US drone strike hit Bayda on this day, according to local security officials, Yemeni tribal leaders and residents.

Casualty estimates ranged. Yemeni tribal leaders and local security officials said that two commanders and four other militants were killed when a drone struck their hideout. An unspecified source told The National that a total of eight fighters were killed, including two commanders. The source said they were known by their noms de guerre - Abu Mohammed Al Dahab and Abu Al Kaka. But an official told AFP that five fighters were killed, including one commander.

The National's source said the men were killed when their moving vehicle was targeted near a known militant base in a mountainous area called Thee Kaleb in Al Kuraishiya district. Reuters spelled the district's name as al Qrishia.

• Type of strike: US air or drone strike
• Location: al Qrishia district, Bayda province
• References: Reuters, AP, AFP, The National

US Central Command said two US strikes had been carried out in September (as of September 28).

We had recorded one in the entry below, which had been reported also in the local press.

This records the second which Centcom said occurred on September 18 in Bayda province. No details were provided on casualty estimates.

• Type of strike: US air or drone strike
• Location: Bayda province
• References: US Central Command via email

US Central Command confirmed it carried out a strike targeting AQAP in Abyan on September 9.

Centcom provided no casualty estimates, but news sites said the strike killed four members of AQAP in a mountainous area of the province's Ahwar district.

A security official told The National that Ali Shanna, known as Sameh Al Marmi, had been killed in the attack. Marmi was described as top field commander, believed to have been the right-hand man of Jalal Baleedi, AQAP's leader in Yemen before he was killed in 2016 by a strike. We have reached out to Centcom on this.

• Type of strike: US air or drone strike
• Location: Ahwar district, Abyan province
• References: US Central Command via email, The National, First Post

A US drone strike carried out last year in Yemen may have killed Ibrahim al Asiri, described as al Qaeda's chief bomb maker, according to numerous sources.

Al Asiri is believed to have been behind the "underwear bomb" attempt to down an airliner over Detroit on Christmas day 2009, which failed, and other foiled aviation-related terror attacks.

The possibility that al Asiri had been killed was mentioned in a recent UN report, however there was no indication of how he died. A Yemeni security official, a tribal leader and an al Qaeda-linked source told AP he was killed in a US drone strike. This reportedly occurred in Marib province.

A US official has since confirmed to ABC that there is a high degree of confidence in nearly year-old intelligence that showed al Asiri was killed by a US drone while in Yemen.

The exact date of his alleged death was not given. The report from the UN's Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team stated that some member states believed the 'explosives expert' may have been killed in the second half of 2017. "Given al Asiri's past role in plots against aviation, this would represent a serious blow to operational capability," the report stated.

CNN reported that counter-terrorism analysts urged significant skepticism regarding al Asiri's death, as AQAP has not released any statement acknowledging it nor a eulogy celebrating his martyrdom, as would usually be expected.

We have reached out to Central Command on this and will update this post as soon as we get more information. We will record the strike in this entry, the date of the AP story, as a possible strike for now.

More information on al Asiri can be found in this UN profile.

• Type of strike: Possible US strike
• Location: Marib province
• References: CNN, AP, UN's Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team report

The US carried out a strike on August 14, US Central Command said in a press release, but no additional details were given.

We have reached out to Centcom for more information

• Type of strike: US air or drone strike
• Location: Unknown
• References: US Central Command press release via email

US Central Command said it conducted strikes on July 22 and 24, both in Hadramout governorate, in response to a Bureau query on the monthly strike total.

No further information was given. We asked for casualty estimates and are still awaiting a response. However, we believe that the Command will not provide this information as in February we were told they had been advised not to give out detailed information on strikes. More info on this can be found here.

This entry records the strike on July 24.

• Type of strike: US air or drone strike
• Location: Hadramout
• References: US Central Command press release via email

US Central Command said it conducted strikes on July 22 and 24, both in Hadramout governorate, in response to a Bureau query on the monthly strike total.

No further information was given. We asked for casualty estimates and are still awaiting a response. However, we believe that the Command will not provide this information as in February we were told they had been advised not to give out detailed information on strikes. More info on this can be found here.

This entry records the strike on July 22.

• Type of strike: US air or drone strike
• Location: Hadramout
• References: US Central Command press release via email

A drone strike targeted a house used by AQAP in Marib province killed four members of the group, AFP reported, citing officials in the local area.

The sourcing is however too vague to include this in our database of confirmed US strikes. We will reach out to US Central Command for more information.

• Type of strike: Possible US strike
• Location: Marib province
• References: AFP

A suspected US drone strike killed seven people believed to belong to al Qaeda in Yemen's Shabwah province, a security official has said.

The group was hit as they drove along a side road in Shabwa’s Bihan district, official told AFP.

However, US Central Command said on July 11 that they had not carried out any strikes so far this month.

• Type of strike: Possible US strike
• Location: Bihan district, Shabwah province
• References: AFP, US Central Command via email

Two US strikes hit Yemen in June, US Central Command confirmed to New America.

One hit on June 23 and the other on June 30, but no additional details on locations or casualties figures were given.

• Type of strike: US air or drone strike
• Location: Yemen
• References: New America

Two US strikes hit Yemen in June, US Central Command confirmed to New America.

One hit on June 23 and the other on June 30, but no additional details on locations or casualties figures were given.

• Type of strike: US air or drone strike
• Location: Yemen
• References: New America

A US drone strike killed four members of AQAP in Shabwah early on May 15, a security official told Xinhua.

"Two vehicles of al Qaeda militants were struck with American missiles, leaving at least four terrorists killed at the scene," the official reportedly said.

Local residents also said the two vehicles were completely destroyed with four charred bodies found in the area.

The US had confirmed a strike the day before, also in Shabwah. It could be that the reports are referring to the same strike. We have reached out to Central Command for further information.

• Type of strike: Possible US strike
• Location: Shabwah province
• References: Xinhua

US Central Command confirmed reports of a US strike in Shabwah on May 14.

Yemeni tribal and security officials had told AP a US drone strike killed three al Qaeda members driving in a vehicle late that night.

However a story published by AP in November 2018 alleged that civilians may have been killed in this strike, but noted there was dispute over this. They reported that Hussein al Dayani and Abdullah al Karbi were killed when their pickup truck was hit in a drone strike. A brother of al Dayani denied the two men were militants, saying his brother was in a militia fighting Houthis and was not a member of AQAP or IS, groups the US targets in Yemen.

However, if al Dayani was a member of an armed group, we wouldn't record him as a civilian in our database. We have recorded a civilian death toll of of between 0 and 1 to reflect the possibility the second man was a civilian.

• Type of strike: US air or drone strike
• Location: Shabwah province
• References: AP, US Central Command press release via email, AP

US Central Command told the Bureau that there were four strikes in Yemen in April, but no additional details were given at the time.

In a press release published in mid-May, additional details on two of the strikes was provided. These have been added into the database under the relevant dates. This entry records the remaining two.

• Type of strike: US air or drone strikes
• Location: Unknown
• References: US Central Command via email

A US strike on April 23 was detailed in a press release from Central Command in mid-May.

The press release said a strike targeted an "AQAP checkpoint for asserting regional control and raising illegal revenue" in Bayda province.

There were no further details.

• Type of strike: US air or drone strike
• Location: Bayda province
• References: US Central Command press release via email

An unnamed security official was reported saying a US drone strike killed two men on a motorcycle in Shabwah province's Baihan district, however Central Command said there were no strikes in the province on the day it was reported to have taken place.

The source said the identities of the dead were unclear as the bodies had been badly damaged in the strike. Al Masdar, which reported the strike, said the dead were suspected al Qaeda members.

A tweet said a US strike had killed two sheep market labourers.

• Type of strike: Possible US strike
• Location: Baihan district, Shabwah province
• References: Al Masdar, Central Command via email

A US strike on April 11 was detailed in a press release from Central Command in mid-May. The strike allegedly hit an AQAP training camp in Hadramout province.

There were no further details.

• Type of strike: US air or drone strike
• Location: Hadramout province
• References: US Central Command press release via email

A US strike hit Yemen's Bayda province, the Pentagon confirmed to Reuters, but the identity of those it killed remains unclear with allegations of civilian casualties arising.

In a May press release, Central Command acknowledged the allegations and said it was conducting a credibility assessment of them. The US had said four members of AQAP were killed.The Pentagon had stated, according to Reuters, that no civilians were present and "therefore none were injured or killed as a result of the strike".

A Yemeni government official said at least three militants died in the strike. The Yemeni official speaking to Xinhua, said the US, acting on intelligence provided by Yemeni authorities, launched a drone strike on an "al Qaeda vehicle" in Bayda's Sawmaah. The three killed were "practicing terrorist activities", Xinhua reported.

However, a local official government source reported that three civilians were killed and two others injured. “The strike, which we suspect was carried out by the US, targeted a vehicle carrying civilians near the western entrance of Al Bayda’s Al Sawmaah directorate,” the source told Anadolu Agency. “The victims all hailed from Al Sawmaah; one of them, Salim al-Manzari, was the former head of Aden’s drivers union.”

• Type of strike: US air or drone strike
• Location: Al Sawmaah, Bayda province
• References: Reuters, Anadolu Agency, Xinhua, US Central Command press release

A US spokesperson told the Intercept that six US strikes hit Yemen this month, all of which hit Hadramout province and targeted AQAP. The article was published on March 26 so the number provided does not cover the entirety of March. US Central Command later confirmed a further strike in March, which took place on March 29 and is in the entry above.

The Intercept examined three of these strikes and found they led to non-AQAP casualties. These three are recorded in more detail in the entries below. The March 29 strike also led to allegations of civilian casualties.

In June, Centcom gave FDD's Long War Journal additional details on March's strikes. This entry recorded three strikes that we knew happened but had no additional details on. We now know that two of these occurred on March 5 and another occurred on March 13, all in Hadramout.

• Type of strike: US air or drone strikes
• Location: Hadramout province
• References: The Intercept, US Central Command via email, FDD's Long War Journal

A US drone strike killed AQAP suspects in a house in Marib province, tribal leaders and a provincial security official has said. However the US has said they carried out no strikes in Yemen on the day the strike reportedly took place.

The security official told Xinhua an overnight strike hit a house on a farm in Wadi Abida valley and killed five people. Yemeni tribal leaders told Associated Press seven AQAP members were killed when a house believed to be used by the militants was hit.

As we have two sources reporting the strikes we have included this strike in our database, but as a possible strike to reflect the US response.

• Type of strike: Possible US strike
• Location: Marib province
• References: AP, Xinhua, US Central Command press release via email

Three US strikes intending to hit AQAP killed Yemeni civilians and people believed to be fighting for groups allied to the US supported Saudi-led coalition, the Intercept has found. They all took place in Hadramout province.

Members of the al Mahashima tribe, to which all the dead belonged, provided accounts to The Intercept. Their accounts have been confirmed by independent sources and rights group Reprieve. Those killed were, they said, were poverty stricken people displaced by fighting in al Jawf province.

Tribe members drove to the town of al Hudhi to urge residents to relocate following two drone strikes in the area in a couple of days. Six members of the tribe, all belonging to one family, were reportedly driving back to Marib when their vehicle was targeted. They were in the area of al Abr when the strike hit at around 1700 local time, accounts say.

All six were reportedly killed. The dead have been identified as local tribal leader Abdullah al Qibli al Wuhair's three adult children and three adult grandchildren.

Local sources have stressed to the Intercept that none of the people killed were members of AQAP or Islamic State. A Yemeni intelligence official has said al Mahashima members reportedly belonged to AQAP were killed some time ago.

The uncle of Amer, the child reportedly killed in the March 5 strike, said he knew the victims of the March 9 strike and stated that they were not members of militant groups like AQAP. Four of them had, he said, been fighting alongside military units aligned with the Saudi-led coalition, which the US has provided support to by, for example, sharing intelligence.

An article published by Associated Press (AP) on civilian casualties in November 2018 detailed a strike on this day. It found six people were killed, including a 14-year-old and an 18-year-old, when their car was struck as they travelled to a funeral. According to AP, a report from the Jawf Human Rights office concluded the men were civilians. This version of events differs from the one detailed by The Intercept.

When asked by the Bureau whether US forces carried out a strike on this day, a US spokesperson said they had on March 8, the day before.

In a later email in April, the US responded to the Bureau regarding four allegations of civilian casualties, including this one. A spokesperson said: "After a thorough review of the facts and circumstances of each civilian casualty report you provided, all four were assessed to be non-credible." However, the spokesperson noted that a finding of non-credible in many cases indicates a lack of evidence and is not intended to deny the possibility that a civilian casualty incident occurred.

The strike was included in our database as a possible strike. It's inclusion takes into account the reporting by The Intercept and AP, but including it as a "possible" strike reflects the military's denial it carried out a strike on that day.

We have also recorded a casualty range for this strike. The four people said to fight for military units, regardless of the unit's affiliation, would not be recorded as civilians. Therefor we have recorded a range of 0-6 civilians killed in this strike. This allows for the possibility that all six were civilians or that all six were affiliated with some kind of armed group. We have also included 0-1 children reported killed, reflecting AP's reporting that a 14-year-old was among the dead.

• Type of strike: Possible US strike
• Location: Al Abr, Hadramout province
• References: The Intercept, US Central Command via email, AP

When asked by the Bureau whether US forces carried out a strike on March 9, a US spokesperson said they had on March 8. This took place in Hadramout.

As a result, we have recorded the March 9 as a possible strike (see entry above) and added the March 8 strike as an additional strike. We are trying to ascertain whether there is a possibility they are the same strike and there has been some confusion with the dates.

• Type of strike: US air or drone strike
• Location: Hadramout province
• References: US Central Command via email

Three US strikes intending to hit AQAP killed Yemeni civilians and people believed to be fighting for groups allied to the US supported Saudi-led coalition, the Intercept has found. They all took place in Hadramout province.

Members of the al Mahashima tribe, to which all the dead belonged, provided accounts to The Intercept. Their accounts have been confirmed by independent sources and rights group Reprieve. Those killed were, they said, were poverty stricken people displaced by fighting in al Jawf province.

The first strike is detailed in the entry below. The second strike reportedly killed a man searching for cell phone coverage on the top of a hill in al Hudhi, a small town in Hadramout. He has been identified as Saleh al Wuhair.

It occurred at around 1700 local time, according to a member of his family and independent observers.

Local sources have stressed to the Intercept that none of the people killed in the three attacks were members of AQAP or Islamic State. A Yemeni intelligence official said the al Mahashima members that reportedly belonged to AQAP were killed some time ago. For example, the uncle of al Wuhair was an AQAP leader but he was killed in a drone strike about five years ago, according to one of al Wuhair’s relatives. Unlike some of the other people killed in the strikes, there was no mention that al Wuhair fought for any armed group. Therefor we have recorded him here as a civilian.

In an email to the Bureau, a US Central Command spokesperson confirmed US forces carried out a strike on this day in Hadramout.

In a later email in April, the US responded to the Bureau regarding four allegations of civilian casualties, including this one. A spokesperson said: "After a thorough review of the facts and circumstances of each civilian casualty report you provided, all four were assessed to be non-credible." However, the spokesperson noted that a finding of non-credible in many cases indicates a lack of evidence and is not intended to deny the possibility that a civilian casualty incident occurred.

• Type of strike: US air or drone strike
• Location: Al Hudhi, Hadramout province
• References: The Intercept, US Central Command via email

Three US strikes intending to hit AQAP killed Yemeni civilians and people believed to be fighting for groups allied to the US supported Saudi-led coalition, the Intercept has found. They all took place in Hadramout province.

Members of the al Mahashima tribe, to which all the dead belonged, provided accounts to The Intercept. Their accounts have been confirmed by independent sources and rights group Reprieve. Those killed were, they said, poverty stricken people displaced by fighting in al Jawf province.

The first strike reportedly killed 13-year-old Amer Ali al Saqra Huraidan and injured his 19-year-old cousin.

The Intercept reported that they were returning from visiting relatives in al Hudhi, a small town in Hadramout, when a drone struck their car on a desert highway at around 1600 local time.

“He was too young to join [any militant groups],” Hasan, Amer's cousin who was injured in the attack said. His uncle told The Intercept: “There’s no link with Al Qaeda whatsoever.”

Local sources stressed to The Intercept that none of the people killed in the three attacks were members of AQAP or Islamic State. Hasan had reportedly just returned from fighting the Houthi rebels. A local activist said Amer's father was a leader in Islah, a Islamist party that has taken a lead role in fighting the same group. A Saudi-led coalition began a bombing campaign against the Houthis in 2015. While the US has not formally backed the Saudi coalition, it has provided support.

A US spokesperson had earlier confirmed a US strike in Hadramout on March 5, although no further details were provided at the time. Intercept were told six strikes had been carried out in Yemen this month, all of which hit Hadramout province.

In April, the US did respond to the Bureau regarding four allegations of civilian casualties, including this one. A spokesperson said: "After a thorough review of the facts and circumstances of each civilian casualty report you provided, all four were assessed to be non-credible." However, the spokesperson noted that a finding of non-credible in many cases indicates a lack of evidence and is not intended to deny the possibility that a civilian casualty incident occurred.

Soon after the strike, a caseworker at Reprieve tweeted that a US drone strike in Marib province had killed a child, but the US said no strikes were carried out there. The Intercept explained the confusion in the article, saying that early reports put the strike in Marib but it became clear that it infact took place in Hadramout - Amer and his cousin had been returning to Marib.

Prior to the Intercept report, a local security official told Xinhua: "A pilotless plane of the US Air Forces conducted a strike on a moving vehicle in Albar desert of Hadramout province, killing four members of al-Qaida network and destroying their vehicle."

Associated Press (AP) published an article in November 2018 on civilian casualties from drone strikes in Yemen. It included a strike on this day, but the name and age of the victim differed. According to AP, the strike killed a 10-year-old boy named Ammer al Mahshami (could be a reference to the name of the tribe he belonged). This was based on their conversations with three relatives. It also reportedly injured the driver of the car they were in.

We have recorded a range for our casualty figures. As the US military deemed the allegations to be "non-credible" and a local security official noted four members of al Qaeda died in the strike, we have included a range that reflects this but also includes The Intercept and AP reporting. As the official did not report a child being killed we have recorded 0-1 children killed.

• Type of strike: US air or drone strike
• Location: Hadramout province
• References: US Central Command press release via email, Xinhua, The Intercept, AP

A US spokesperson told the Bureau five US strikes were carried out in Yemen in February, but no additional details were provided.

However, Long War Journal was given additional information on these strikes in June. Centcom told them six strikes had taken place in February, not five, all of which took place in Bayda province. These are as follows:

- Strike on February 7
- Strike on February 11
- Strike on February 12
- Strike on February 16
- Two strikes on February 24

We had already recorded the strikes on February 11 and February 16. The additional four strikes have been entered under this single entry.

• Type of strike: US air or drone strike
• Location: Bayda
• References: US Central Command press release via email, FDD's Long War Journal

Reports surfaced of a strike in Yemen's Bayda province.

AFP said a motorbike was targeted at around midnight on February 16. A security official told them, "The strike targeted two al Qaeda militants, local commander Abu Hussein al Theriya and another, Dawoud al Sanaani, as they rode through the province."

However, Xinhua said a military official told them drone strike on February 17 hit a small pick-up truck killing three AQAP members. They also reported the death of a local commander. Residents near the scene confirmed to Xinhua that the bodies of the commander and two companions were in the vehicle.

We reached out to Central Command who confirmed they carried out a strike on February 16 in Bayda province. No further details were provided. We have added this strike into the database.

• Type of strike: US air or drone strike
• Location: Bayda province
• References: US Central Command press release via email, AFP, Xinhua

The US confirmed it conducted a strike against AQAP in Bayda province on February 11.

While no additional details were provided, AFP reported six members of the group were killed, citing a security official.

“An unmanned drone -- likely American -- bombed the group’s vehicle in the area of Qayfa, where Al-Qaeda is active,” the official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

• Type of strike: US air or drone strike
• Location: Bayda province
• References: US Central Command press release via email, AFP

US forces have carried out ten strikes in Yemen since the start of the year, a US Central Command spokesperson told the Bureau on January 29.

We have recorded two strikes individually for this month, and this entry records the remaining eight.

While we received no information at the time on where and when they occurred, or casualty estimates, the FDD's Long War Journal received more information in June.

Centcom said the US conducted eight strikes against AQAP in Bayda province in January. These took place on January 1, 3, 9, 12, 13, 20, 25, and 29. A strike against the Islamic State occurred on January 12, also in Bayda. One strike took place in Shabwah on January 26, targeting AQAP.

• Type of strike: US air or drone strike
• Location: Bayda and Shabwah provinces
• References: US Centra Command press release via email, FDD's Long War Journal, AP

AFP reported a drone strike killing seven suspected AQAP fighters in Shabwah province in the early hours of January 27, citing a security source. A car was allegedly targeted in the strike.

While US Central Command denied US forces carried out a strike on this day, they did say ten strikes had been carried out so far in 2018. At that time we had recorded no strikes since the start of the year, although this later changed following an AP article in November.

• Type of strike: Possible US strike
• Location: Shabwah province
• References: AFP, US Central Command press release via email, AP

Protests reportedly erupted in Shabwah in response to an alleged drone strike killing civilians. Residents said that a car was hit carrying at least six male members of the same family and another individual. They were reportedly looking for a missing child.

There was some confusion on the date of the strike, with reports placing it on either January 27 or January 28, both days the US military denied carrying out a strike. However, Associated Press (AP) published a story nearly a year later which said the strike occurred on January 26, a day the US confirmed it did carry out a strike.

The AP article provides further details. They report that a 14-year-old boy sent out to buy vegetables came across a friend who told him militants were giving out free motorbikes. He was lured to their camp by this promise, and on his family's realisation of this, they went out in search. However, their vehicle was hit by a strike. Inside was the boy's father, Saleh bin Elwiya, the father's eldest son, two nephews and a brother-in-law, alongside two people who had agreed to help with the search.

Saleh al Aishi al Ateeqi, a relative of one of the victims, told local media at the time: "The victims were all innocent civilians who had nothing to do with any political or religious organisation."

A Pentagon spokesperson confirmed to AP a strike targeting al Qaeda had taken place in the province on that day. The spokesperson did not seem to deny that the strike killed civilians, instead reportedly stating that they did not release details or death tolls in drone strikes. We have reached out to US Central Command for more information in light of the AP piece.

• Type of strike: US air or drone strike
• Location: Said district, Shabwah province
• References: Al Jazeera, US Central Command via email, AP

A strike in Yemen which allegedly killed two civilians on this day came to light in an AP report published in November 2018.

According to AP, a drone missile slammed into a farm in Bayda province killing 70-year-old Mohammed Mansar Abu Sarima and a younger relative. Their information was provided by a family member. They had reportedly just returned from mediating a local dispute.

“We don’t have any affiliation. They are simple farmers who don’t know how to read or write,” the brother told AP. “We live in fear. Drones don’t leave the sky.”

US Central Command confirmed back in January that a strike took place in this province on this day. We have reached out to US Central Command for further information following the new information.

• Type of strike: US air or drone strike
• Location: Bayda province
• References: AP