Death of al-Yazid would be a blow to al-Qaida

WASHINGTON — The death of Mustafa Abu al-Yazid, an Egyptian who is believed to act as the terrorist network's operational leader, would be the latest blow to al-Qaida, which has suffered a steady degradation of its leadership and ability to mount attacks since the U.S. stepped up its campaign of missile strikes by unmanned aircraft in Pakistan's tribal region.

Al-Qaida's third-ranking leader — a close associate and relative by marriage to Osama bin Laden — is believed to have been killed in a U.S. drone strike in Pakistan's tribal region, U.S. officials said Tuesday.

Some analysts said the militant network has shrugged off similar losses of its top tier leaders and is increasingly relying on new franchises that threaten attacks on the U.S. With offshoots in Yemen, Somalia, North Africa and along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, al-Qaida has become a more fragmented enemy. And, as shown by the Christmas Day airliner attack, its franchises are becoming more independent, more dangerous and equally intent on targeting America.

Thus even as the U.S. eliminates al-Qaida leaders, the terror group is rapidly inspiring new recruits who are just as eager to attack and kill Americans.

"While we're having some success in putting pressure on them, they're also having a great deal of success radicalizing other parts of the global Islamic jihadist movement to join them in attacking the United States," said Bruce Riedel, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution Saban Center and a former CIA officer.

Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the Nigerian accused of trying to blow up a Detroit-bound airliner on Christmas Day, reportedly trained with al-Qaida in Yemen. And the alleged Times Square bomber Faisal Shahzad, who was arrested shortly after the failed terror attempt last month, reportedly received training from insurgents in Pakistan.

Al-Yazid, also known as Sheik Saeed al-Masri, was believed to play a role in al-Qaida's finances and its continuing attempts to mount attacks. He is also thought to have been the key conduit to Bin Laden and his No. 2, Ayman al-Zawahiri, both of whom are thought to play a minimal role in the network's day-to-day activities because of their need to remain in hiding.

He served as al-Qaida's chief financial officer, managing secret bank accounts in the Persian Gulf that were used to help finance the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on New York and Washington.

U.S. officials discussed his apparent death after a statement began appearing on extremist websites announcing that he had been killed in Pakistan. It did not confirm how he was killed but said that his wife, three daughters and others were killed at the same time, according to the SITE Institute, a private group that monitors militant websites.

The statement did not give an exact date for al-Yazid's death, but it was dated by the Islamic calendar month of "Jemadi al-Akhar," which falls in May.

In August 2008, Pakistani military officials claimed al-Yazid had been killed in fighting in the Bajaur tribal area along the Afghan border. However, he turned up in subsequent al-Qaida videos, all of which had clearly been made after the Bajaur fighting.

Among al-Yazid's predecessors in the third spot were Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the reputed mastermind of the Sept. 11 attacks, who is being held in the Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, detention center; Mohammed Atef, who was killed in U.S. airstrikes in Afghanistan in 2001; Abu Laith al-Libi, who was killed in a January 2008 drone strike, and Abu Farraj al-Libbi, who was captured and detained in Pakistan.

Al-Yazid ascended to the job a few years ago, an official said, and has issued several statements since then promising or taking credit for attacks, including the suicide bombing against a CIA base in Khost, Afghanistan, last year that killed seven CIA employees and contractors.

Al-Yazid , who is believed to have been 56, had been involved with Islamic extremist movements for nearly 30 years after joining al-Zawahiri in a radical organization founded in Egypt. He spent three years in prison in connection with the assassination of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and later followed bin Laden to Sudan and Afghanistan, where he was involved in the planning for the Sept. 11 attacks. A report issued by the 9-11 Commission said al-Yazid had been among the al-Qaida leaders who had opposed the hijacking operation.

Al-Yazid had little background in leading combat operations. But terrorism experts say his advantage was that he was close to Taliban leader Mullah Omar and spoke the local language. As a fluent Pashto speaker known for impeccable manners, al-Yazid enjoyed better relations with the Afghans than many of the al-Qaida Arabs, whom the Afghans found arrogant and abrasive.

That suggested a conscious decision by al-Qaida to embed within the Taliban organization, helping the Afghan allies with expertise and training while at the same time putting an Afghan face on the war.

There is also evidence that al-Yazid has promoted ties with Islamic extremist groups in Central Asia and Pakistan, where other top al-Qaida figures are believed to be hiding.

"He definitely seems to have significant influence among the Pakistani Taliban and the Central Asian groups," terrorism expert Evan Kohlman said. "They regularly post and share his videos on the Web, just as they would with bin Laden or al-Zawahri."

In its announcement of al-Yazid's death, al-Qaida issued a blunt warning.

"What he left behind will, with permission from Allah, continue to be generous and copious and to produce heroes and raise generations," the terror group said in a message on jihadist websites. "His death will only be a severe curse by his life upon the infidels."

Additional information from The Associated Press