Pakistan: US Says Major Blow To Al-Qaeda As Deputy Killed
By RFE RL
(RFE/RL) — U.S. officials say they believe another major loss has been inflicted on Al-Qaeda with the killing in Pakistan of the Islamic terrorist group’s suspected second-in-command.
A U.S. official said Atiyah Abd al-Rahman, described as having been involved in organizing Al-Qaeda operations, was killed August 22 in the northwestern Waziristan trial area.
Some reports quote officials as saying Rahman, a Libyan national, was apparently killed by a U.S. drone strike.
U.S. officials are quoted as saying his death marks a significant strike against Al-Qaeda, as he was considered a trusted associate who was relied upon by Al-Qaeda’s current leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri.
Rahman is reported to have risen in the Al-Qaeda hierarchy after the group’s former leader, Osama bin Laden, was killed by U.S. special forces in Pakistan in May.
