Battle of Lawdar (2010)

Battle of Lawdar (2010)
	Part of the al-Qaeda insurgency in Yemen
Date	19–24 August 2010; (5 days)
Location	Lawdar, Abyan Governorate, Yemen13°53′0″N 45°52′0″E / 13.88333°N 45.86667°E
Status	Yemeni victory Government forces secure Lawdar; Most AQAP forces escape;
Belligerents
Yemen	al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula; Southern Movement (alleged by Yemen, denied);
Commanders and leaders
Mohammed Nasser Ahmed; Yahya al-Barkani;	Adel Saleh Hardaba †;
Units involved
Yemeni Armed Forces Yemeni Land Forces; ; Ministry of Interior Central Security Organization Central Security Forces; ; ;	Unknown
Strength
Hundreds of soldiers	~200 fighters; ~200 fighters;
Casualties and losses
Per AFP:; 11 killed;	Per Yemen:; 12 killed; Per AFP:; 19 killed;
	3 civilians killed; 3,000 displaced;
	Lawdar Location within Yemen

On 19 August 2010, gunmen from al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) attacked a group of soldiers at a market in Lawdar, a city in Abyan Governorate. The next day, an ambush perpetrated by the group on a convoy of soldiers in the city left 11 dead. In response to the attacks, the Yemeni Armed Forces besieged the city on 21 August and announced an imminent offensive commander by defense minister Mohammed Nasser Ahmed, urging the militants and civilians to leave. Intense clashes broke out at the night of 22 August between AQAP militants and Yemeni Army after the ultimatum expired.

By 23 August, AQAP was believed to be withdrawing most of its forces from Lawdar. The next day, the Yemeni government declared that the military had secured the city. According to Agence-France Presse, 11 soldiers and 19 militants were killed during the conflict from 20 August onwards, while three civilians were also killed. Commentators noted that the operation was the first large-scale military confrontation between the Yemeni government and AQAP.