Al Mahrah ( '), or simply Mahra, is a

governorate A governorate or governate is an administrative division headed by a governor. As English-speaking nations tend to call regions administered by governors either states or provinces, the term ''governorate'' is typically used to calque divisions ...

(''

muhafazah A is a first-level administrative division of many Arab countries, and a second-level administrative division in Saudi Arabia. The term is usually translated as "governorate", and occasionally as "province". It comes from the Arabic triconsonant ...

'') of

Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...

in the southern part of the

Arabian Peninsula The Arabian Peninsula (, , or , , ) or Arabia, is a peninsula in West Asia, situated north-east of Africa on the Arabian plate. At , comparable in size to India, the Arabian Peninsula is the largest peninsula in the world. Geographically, the ...

. Situated in the area of the former

Mahra Sultanate The Mahra Sultanate, known in its later years as the Mahra State of Qishn and Socotra ( ') or sometimes the Mahra Sultanate of Ghayda and Socotra ( '), was a sultanate that included the historical region of Al Mahrah Governorate, Mahra and the Gu ...

, its capital is Al Ghaydah. It has international borders with

Oman Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...

Languages and people

A sizeable part of the Mahrah population does not speak Arabic as their primary language. Non-Arabic-speakers primarily speak Mehri or Mahri, which is a

modern South Arabian The Modern South Arabian languages, also known as Eastern South Semitic languages, are a group of endangered languages spoken by small populations inhabiting the Arabian Peninsula, in Yemen and Oman, and Socotra Island. Together with the Ethiosem ...

language, similar to the adjacent

Dhofar Governorate The Dhofar Governorate () is the largest of the 11 Governorates of Oman, governorates in the Oman, Sultanate of Oman in terms of area. It lies in southern Oman, on the eastern border with Yemen's Al Mahrah Governorate and the southern border wi ...

. The people that speak Mahri call themselves 'Mahris', and are presumed to be descendants of the ancient people of 'Ad.

Geography

The geography of Al-Mahrah is similar to that of neighboring Dhofar region of Oman. Rigid peaks rising to around , and the Empty Quarter Desert lies to the north. Along its coast near the border with Oman, Al Mahrah receives the seasonal

monsoon A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in Atmosphere of Earth, atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annu ...

, or Khareef. The mountains become water-soaked and the atmosphere becomes moist and foggy as vegetation turns the barren coast into lush valleys and forests. Hauf National Park is located in Al-Mahrah. The mountains here are referred to as either the "Mahrat" or "

Hadhramaut Hadhramaut ( ; ) is a geographic region in the southern part of the Arabian Peninsula which includes the Yemeni governorates of Hadhramaut, Shabwah and Mahrah, Dhofar in southwestern Oman, and Sharurah in the Najran Province of Saudi A ...

Adjacent governorates

* Hadhramaut Governorate (west) *

(east)

History

Yemeni Civil War

The governorate has remained relatively untouched by the civil war in Yemen that began in 2015. On 10 September 2016, three militants in the Al Mahrah governorate declared on social media the formation of a new ''wilayat'', or state, belonging to the

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS occupied signi ...

(ISIL). However, official ISIL media did not acknowledge the declaration. From 2015 to late 2017, Al Mahrah was under the control of the Yemeni 123rd and 137th Mechanized Brigades. From mid-November 2017 onwards, Saudi Arabia began increasing its presence in the governorate, taking control of facilities, Nishtun port, the Sarfit and Shehen border crossings, and al-Gaydah Airport, while establishing military outposts around key infrastructure and coastal areas. On 27 November 2017, Mohammed Abdullah Kuddah, the governor of Al Mahrah, was replaced by Rajeh Said Bakrit, following the former's objections to Saudi influence.

Districts

Al Mahrah Governorate is divided into the following 10 districts. These districts are further divided into sub-districts, and then further subdivided into villages: * Al Ghaydah district * Al Masilah district * Hat district * Hawf district * Huswain district * Man'ar district * Qishn district * Sayhut district * Shahan district * Rimah district

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Al Mahrah Governorate Governorates of Yemen