Top Al-Qaeda commander killed in Yemen

One of Al-Qaeda’s top commanders in Yemen has been killed in an airstrike, the US military announced yesterday.

Abu Khattab Al-Awlaki, an emir of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, was killed along with two members of the militant organisation in an airstrike in the Shabwa province.

According to a statement released by the US Central Command, “Awlaki was a senior leader responsible for the planning and carrying out of terrorist attacks against civilians.”

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The statement continued:  “He had considerable influence in Al-Qaeda’s terrorist stronghold in the Arabian Peninsula and had links with other senior leaders of the organisation and was involved in planning and leading efforts to exacerbate the unrest in Southern Yemen.”

Three people suspected of belonging to the organisation were killed last Friday in a raid by US military aircraft in Southern Yemen, where a Yemeni security official announced that the raid targeted a vehicle in the province of Shabwa.