Al-Qaeda leader claims German 9/11 suspect has died

A German man believed to have provided logistical support to the Hamburg-based September 11 hijackers has died, according to a newly-released audio message from the leader of al-Qaeda.

The announcement by Ayman al-Zawahiri comes in an August 2 audio message posted online in which he says a man he identifies as Zuhair al-Maghribi who worked for As-Sahab, the terror network’s media arm, is a “martyr.”

He says al-Maghribi is one of several who “sacrificed their lives” but doesn’t provide details on when or how they died.

Al-Maghribi is a known alias of Said Bahaji, who authorities have said worked for As-Sahab. He’s been wanted on an international arrest warrant issued by Germany shortly after the 2001 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington.

Germany-born Bahaji, who is of Moroccan descent, is believed to have helped suicide hijackers Mohamad Atta, Marwan al-Shehhi and Ziad Jarrah when they were in Hamburg, and to have fled shortly before the September 11 attacks.

— AP