diff --git a/RELEASE b/RELEASE
index ff438bdd9d..ffd6fa81d6 100644
--- a/RELEASE
+++ b/RELEASE
@@ -153,3 +153,13 @@ corrected. Additional, this release contains fixes for compilation with
 gcc-4.6. Distributors and system integrators are encouraged to update
 and share their patches against this branch.
 
+
+
+* 0.5.6 Nov 21, 2011
+
+General notes
+-------------
+
+This maintenance-only release addresses several security issues that
+were brought to our attention.
+
diff --git a/VERSION b/VERSION
index d1d899fa33..b49b25336d 100644
--- a/VERSION
+++ b/VERSION
@@ -1 +1 @@
-0.5.5
+0.5.6