Miraa users flee towns after ban

MOGADISHU, Friday

Hundreds of miraa (khat) users have fled from southern Somalia districts after Al-Shabaab outlawed the drug.

Residents in various parts of Mogadishu said several miraa users had moved to Mogadishu in the last few days.

Mr Mohamed Hussein, a media analyst, said most of the new arrivals were users of miraa, who faced scarcity of the drug following ban on trade and consumption of the substance.

Residents of middle and lower Shabelle regions that are governed by militants loyal to Al-Shabaab, confirmed that the rulers had banned sale and consumption of miraa.

“There has been no khat in our district for the last one week,” said a user in a Lower Shabelle district, who chose not to be named for security reasons.

Most of the khat consumed in Somalia is imported from Kenya and Ethiopia.

Others said the directive had been in place for a while but had not been enforced.