DEAD JIHADI UPDATE:
http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2010/05/top_al_qaeda_leader_1.php
“Top al Qaeda leader Mustafa Abu Yazid confirmed killed in airstrike in North Waziristan”
By BILL ROGGIO
May 31, 2010
SNIPPET: “Mustafa Abu Yazid, who is also known as Sheikh Saeed al Masri, was killed in the May 21 Predator strike in the village of Mohammed Khel in the Datta Khel area of North Waziristan. Datta Khel is a known al Qaeda hub in North Waziristan.
As Sahab, al Qaeda’s propaganda arm, released a statement announcing Yazid’s death on Al Ansar, a jihadist forum.”
SNIPPET: “Yazid is one of al Qaeda’s most important leaders, and he will be difficult to replace. He served as al Qaeda’s leader in Afghanistan and what the terror group refers to as the Khorasan, a region that encompasses large areas of Afghanistan, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Iran. The Khorasan is considered by jihadists to be the place where they will inflict the first defeat against their enemies in the Muslim version of Armageddon. The final battle is to take place in the Levant - Israel, Syria, and Lebanon.
The 9-11 Commission identified Yazid as al Qaeda’s “chief financial manager.” In this role, Yazid was responsible for disbursing al Qaeda funds from what is known as the Bayt al Mal, al Qaeda’s treasury. This responsibility made Yazid one of the most trusted and important al Qaeda leaders. Because of this responsibility, Yazid is considered by some analysts to be al Qaeda’s third in command.
Yazid was a founding member of Ayman al Zawahiri’s branch of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad, one of the original groups that merged to form al Qaeda. Yazid spent time in jail with Zawahiri after the assassination of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat in 1981.
He also served as a top propagandist. Yazid has appeared on propaganda tapes with senior Taliban leaders, and has announced the deaths of top al Qaeda leaders and operatives over the years.”
Thanks to Kristinn for the ping to this thread:
Quote:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2524928/posts
Officials: Al Qaeda No.3 Killed
ABC News ^ | Monday, May 31, 2010 | Jake Tapper and George Stephanopoulos
Posted on May 31, 2010 6:43:26 PM PDT by kristinn
US officials tell ABC News that al Qaeda’s No. 3 — Mustafa Ahmed Muhammad Uthman Abu al-Yazid, known as Shaikh Sa’id al-Masri and Mustafa Abu al-Yazid – has been killed. Al Qaeda released a eulogy of Shaikh Sa’id tonight, officials said.
“Word is spreading in extremist circles of the death of Sheikh Sa’id al-Masri, widely viewed as the number three figure in al-Qaeda,” a US official told ABC News. “We have strong reason to believe that’s true, and that al-Masri was killed recently in Pakistan’s tribal areas. In terms of counterterrorism, this would be a big victory.”
US officials believed him to have been killed about a week ago in Pakistan.
Osama bin Laden and Ayman al Zawahiri are the spiritual founders, and considered No. 1 and No. 2 of al Qaeda list, but Shaikh Sa’id is considered the link between those two and rest of the operation, and for all intents and purposes the one running the organization day to day.
“Al-Masri was the group’s chief operating officer,” the official said, “with a hand in everything from finances to operational planning. He was also the organization’s prime conduit to Bin Ladin and Zawahiri. He was key to al-Qaeda’s command and control.”
(Excerpt) Read more at blogs.abcnews.com ...