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Ban on Horn of Africa drug khat comes into force
Possessing, selling and importing khat - a plant used as a stimulant by Somal, Yemeni and Ethiopian communities - is illegal from today.
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Yemeni community: Khat ban 'will cause problems'
Ameen Aldobhani, a member of the Yemeni community in Cardiff, told ITV News he believes there will be "a lot of problems" due to the criminalisation of the herbal stimulant khat.
He said "There's a lot of people who buy khat now. People will keep it. It's going to be hidden everywhere, and they will chew it, whatever."
The plant is classified as a Class C drug from today.
The Home Office says its decision will help protect vulnerable people here and stop the UK becoming a hub for trafficking.
The criminalisation of the drug has divided large Somali and Yemeni communities in Cardiff, and also Newport and Swansea.
An ITV Cymru Wales investigation last year found many Somali people who were addicted to chewing khat, warning that it causes social problems, and calling for it to be banned.
Yemeni people commonly chew a slightly different khat plant, and, after plans for a ban were announced last July, told ITV News that it does them no harm, and is an important cultural tradition.
The Home Office's decision to ban the stimulant was contrary to advice from the Home Affairs Select Committee and the Advisory Council for the Misuse of Drugs.
Stimulant drug khat becomes illegal
Today sees the introduction of a ban on the drug Khat.
The leafy plant is chewed and acts as a stimulant. It's traditionally used by Britain's Somali, Yemeni and Ethiopian communities.
It makes its users feel more alert, happy and talkative when chewed, is now banned as a class C drug despite advice from the Government's official advisers that it should not be classified.
Home Secretary Theresa May announced the ban would go ahead in March, despite calls for khat to be licensed rather than banned.