Al-Qaida’s Yemeni commander killed by U.S. drone strike

Al-Qaida on Tuesday confirmed that Nasir al-Wahishi, its No. 2 figure and leader of its powerful Yemeni affiliate, was killed in a U.S. strike, the harshest blow to the global militant network since the killing of Osama bin Laden. In a video statement released by the media wing of Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, as the Yemeni affiliate is known, a senior operative read a statement announcing the death of al-Wahishi, who once served as bin Laden’s personal secretary, and said his deputy, Qassim al-Raimi, has been tapped to replace him. U.S. officials had said they were trying to verify whether al-Wahishi had been killed.

In the name of God, the blood of these pioneers make us more determined to sacrifice. Let the enemies know that the battle is not with an individual … the battle led by crusaders and their agents is colliding with a billion-member nation.

Khaled Batrafi, al-Qaida spokesman

Al-Wahishi was among 23 militants who broke out of a detention facility in Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, in February 2006. In 2009, he announced the creation of Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, which gathered together Yemeni and Saudi militants. Al-Raimi, the new leader of the militant wing, is thought to be the brains behind a series of attacks, including a foiled plot to mail bombs to the United States and multiple attacks against Yemen’s U.S.-backed government. In writings and videos, he has vowed to topple the Sanaa government and strike America.