Al-Qaeda confirms top figure killed in US strike in Yemen last month, says monitor

In this Friday, June 15, 2012 file photo, an al-Qaeda logo is seen on a street sign in the town of Jaar in southern Abyan province, Yemen (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)
In this Friday, June 15, 2012 file photo, an al-Qaeda logo is seen on a street sign in the town of Jaar in southern Abyan province, Yemen (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)

Al-Qaeda confirms the death of a senior figure in the jihadist network’s Yemen branch in a suspected US airstrike last month, SITE Intelligence Group reports.

Security and local government sources told AFP last week that Hamad bin Hamoud al-Tamimi had been killed, identifying him as a top leader of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), which Washington regards as among the group’s most dangerous branches.

Tamimi, a Saudi also known as Abdel Aziz al-Adnani, died in a drone strike on February 26 that targeted his residence in war-torn Yemen’s northern Marib province, according to the statement reported by SITE, which monitors jihadist websites.

The statement identifies him as a “media official” who “previously managed external operations in the group, including those striking American interests,” SITE says.

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