Ansar al-Sharia is simply an effort for Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, or AQAP, to rebrand itself with the intention of manipulating people to join its cause, the State Department said in a statement.

The United Nations also listed Ansar al-Sharia on its al Qaeda sanctions blacklist on Thursday, meaning the group now faces a worldwide asset freeze, a travel ban and an arms embargo…

Earlier Thursday, a drone air strike killed five suspected Ansar al-Sharia members as they traveled in a car in the southern Yemeni province of Shabwa, AFP reported, citing a local tribal chief and witnesses.