Word: yemen
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There are no rules of hereditary succession to the feudal throne of the Imam of Yemen, and the reigning Sword of Islam wields it only so long as he can keep his enemies at bay. The enemies are many, the proliferation of pretenders spawned by his multi-wived Moslem relatives. But on his side the Imam has absolute powers : Macbeth's castle and the Borgia palaces were holiday resorts compared with present-day Yemen, where ten of the current Imam's brothers and most of his dozen sons have died violently in family infighting and palace intrigues...
...Three months ago. suffering from arthritis, rheumatism and heart trouble, the Imam traipsed off to Italy for a rest cure, traveling light with only one wife and one concubine (the other women in the entourage, explained an aide, are not his). The old man left Badr in charge in Yemen, and everyone expected trouble. Sure enough, trouble came...
Under medical treatment in Rome, the ailing Imam of Yemen, 67, was suffering from arthritis, also reportedly from the effects of chewing too many qat leaves (a common Middle Eastern narcotic), swigging too many flagons of eau de cologne (he likes the stuff), and leaning too heavily on aphrodisiacs. In keeping with Arabian face-keeping, the oil-rich Imam arrived in Rome last month with an entourage of about 90 assorted Yemeni, including several Cabinet ministers, scimitar-bearing guards, three of his Queens, 23 concubines (who, according to the Italian Foreign Office, are not genuine harem types, "just slaves...
...reporters. "In the name of the Algerian people," Ferhat Abbas, 58, announced the formation of a "government-in-exile" for the new Algerian republic "which considers itself in a state of war with France." Egypt's Nasser quickly hailed the "blessed step," and within 24 hours, Iraq, Yemen and Libya had recognized the nation. More reluctantly, since they fear repercussions from France, Tunisia and Morocco followed suit...
...Lebanon, Jordan, the U.A.R., Iraq, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, the Sudan, Libya...