Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula and allied tribesmen overran the city of Mukalla — capital of the vast Hadramawt province — last month, in part because of heavy fighting elsewhere between Shiite rebels known as Houthis and loyalists of Yemen‘s internationally recognized president, backed by Saudi-led airstrikes.
The tribesmen, who refer to themselves as „Sons of Hadramawt,“ on Thursday distributed pamphlets saying qat chewing is banned and that violators „will be held fully responsible under Shariah law,“ without elaborating.