Khalid al-Batarfi, the leader of Al-Qaeda’s Yemen branch (known as Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula or AQAP, has died, announced the terrorist outfit on Sunday.
According to a report by the news agency Associated Press on Monday. ‘Al-Qaeda released a video showing al-Batarfi wrapped in a white funeral shroud and the outfit’s black and white flag’, according to the media reports.
He was believed to be in his early 40s. ‘A’tef al-Awlaki would take over as its branch’s leader in Yemen and al-Batarfi took over as AQAP’s head in February 2020, said Al-Qaeda.
He succeeded leader Qassim al-Rimi, who was killed by a US drone strike ordered by then-president Donald Trump
Born in Saudi Arabia, al-Batarfi traveled to Afghanistan in 1999 and fought alongside the Taliban during the US-led invasion. He joined the AQAP in 2010
Al-Batarfi had a $5 million bounty on his head from the US government over leading the AQAP.
Meanwhile, the new leader al-Awlaki has a $6 million reward on him from the US with Washington saying he “has publicly called for attacks against the United States and its allies.”
The AQAP has been seen by the US as Al-Qaeda’s most dangerous branch ever since it attempted to bomb a commercial airliner over the US in 2009.
The branch claimed accountablity for the 2015 deadly attack in Paris on the French satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo.
‘Although in decline, AQAP remains the most effective terrorist group in Yemen with intent to conduct operations in the region and beyond’, said a recent report by the United Nations.
The AQAP has between 3,000 and 4,000 active fighters and passive members. ‘The Yemen branch raises money by robbing banks and money exchange shops, as well as smuggling weapons, counterfeiting currencies and ransom operations’ said the UN.
Under al-Batarfi, AQAP fell further under the influence of Al-Qaeda fighter Saif al-Adl, now believed to have led the group after the killing of Ayman al-Zawahiri in an American drone strike in Afghanistan in 2022.
Comments