Aden: Al Qaida militants in southeastern Yemen have publicly flogged 10 men in a new sign of their growing control over the lawless region, witnesses and an official said on Friday.
The men were whipped in Al Shihr, a coastal town in Hadramawt province, after being summarily convicted of insulting God and consuming alcohol and drugs, the official said.
Dozens of people attended the flogging.
Witnesses said each man received between 80 and 100 lashes.
The official said Al Qaida militants have been harassing residents by interfering in all aspects of their daily lives.
Al Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (Aqap) controls parts of Hadramawt, including provincial capital Mukalla, which they seized in April.
Aqap has exploited months of fighting in Yemen between the Iran-backed Al Houthi militia and the Saudi-backed government of the President Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi to expand their area of influence.
The United States considers Aqap to be Al Qaida’s deadliest global franchise and regularly targets its militants with drone strikes on Yemeni territory.
