Al-Qaeda gains ground in Yemen as country descends into civil war
▻http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/alqaeda-gains-ground-in-yemen-as-country-descends-into-civil-war-9973
Its increased strength has nothing to do with foreign jihadists like Chérif and Saïd Kouachi, who killed 12 people in Paris last week and received training from al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (Aqap) based in Yemen in the summer of 2011. Aqap is finding support among Sunni tribes that previously fought against it but are now under pressure from the Houthis, who belong to a Shia branch known as the Zaidis.