ZeroFox Physical Security Intelligence Daily Brief - May 1, 2024

ZeroFox Physical Security Intelligence Daily Brief - May 1, 2024

ZeroFox physical security experts collect, curate, and analyze information derived from open and proprietary sources for comprehensive context of the circumstances surrounding global events. Here is today’s daily roundup of major developments.

Brief Highlights

• Kenyan President William Ruto Orders Evacuation of Residents from Low-Lying Areas
• Uptick in Mapuche Violence in Chile
• Houthis Claim to Attack Ship in Indian Ocean

Kenyan President William Ruto Orders Evacuation of Residents from Low-Lying Areas

On April 30, President William Ruto ordered the evacuation of residents from low-lying areas due to heavy rainfall that prompted flooding and landslides in Kenya amid the country's rainy season. Since May 2024, 169 people have been killed in weather-related incidents in the country, including in areas near the capital Nairobi. Meanwhile, more than 150,000 people have been displaced by the monsoon rains. The rains damaged roads, swept away homes and vehicles, and flooded sanitation systems. Tanzania and Burundi have also been heavily affected by the season, displacing more than 200,000 people in Burundi. Emergency have launched rescue operations and provided aid to help residents in the affected areas.

Uptick in Mapuche Violence in Chile

On April 27, three police officers were killed in an attack by indigenous Mapuche rebels in the southern Araucania region of Chile. There was also a Mapuche incendiary attack a few days earlier in the same region. Both attacks came after a court found a Mapuche leader guilty of orchestrating similar acts of violence over a years-long period in southern Chile. Chile's Araucania and Bio Bio regions have been under a near constant state of emergency since mid-2022 over Mapuche attacks which normally target security forces and multinational corporations operating on disputed land in southern Chile. Southern Chile is home to large forestry companies who are often targeted. Truckers operating in the region are also frequent targets and there have been frequent protests by Mapuche groups as well as victims of Mapuche violence across the country in recent years. The recent flare-up in violence comes after a significant de-escalation in Mapuche attacks in 2024.

Houthis Claim to Attack Ship in Indian Ocean

On April 30, sources reported that Yemen’s Houthi militants claimed to have used an explosive drone to target a cargo vessel in the Indian Ocean, a first for the group. The Portugal-flagged vessel MSC Orion, partly owned by an Israeli businessman, was sailing between the ports of Sines, Portugal and Salalah, Oman when it was struck roughly 300 nautical miles southeast of the Horn of Africa. The ship received minor damage and no casualties were reported. Sources reported that the attack took place on April 26.