Al Qaeda Declares Southern Yemeni Province An "Islamic Emirate"

Image: Courtesy of Al-Jazeera

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Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) has declared Yemen's Abyan province an "Islamic Emirate" and banned women from going outside, according to Eurasia Review and accounts from Yemeni journalists. AQAP, which has established full control over the southern province, made an online statement Wednesday declaring Abyan an Islamic Emirate governed by Shariah.
The statement said women in the province should not go out except under necessary circumstances, "and she who urgently needs to go out, should be with one of her male relatives, and should have ID with her."
AQAP's announcement comes just a few days after jihadists looted an ammunition factory in Ja'ar, a city in Abyan province, killing 150 people in an apparently accidental explosion. Al Qaeda militants have also taken control of local communications facilities in the province.