Saleh al-Somali, born Abdirizaq Abdi Saleh,[1] was described as being an al-Qaeda leader and the group's head of external operations.[1][2][3][4] He was killed by a missile fired from an unmanned predator drone on 8 December 2009. The missile strike was on a suspect compound in Janikhel village near Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas, today a part of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Saleh al-Somali | |
|---|---|
| Died | 8 December 2009 Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan |
| Nationality | Somali |
| Occupation | Alleged al Qaida operational planner |
| Known for | Killed by a missile strike |
Initially the identity of the senior al Qaida leader reported killed was not made public.[2] But on 11 December 2009 ABC News quoted a US security official who said: "There are strong indications that senior al Qaeda operations planner Saleh al-Somali has been killed".[5]
References
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"Source: Senior al-Qaida leader killed by drone: Militant was head of external operations, official tells NBC News". NBC News. 25 September 2006.
Abdirizaq Abdi Saleh, better known by his nom de guerre Saleh al-Somali, was a member of al-Qaida's senior leadership, said the official, and "probably responsible" for planning and executing attacks in the U.S. and Europe.
- ^ a b
Luis Martinez, Martha Raddatz (11 December 2009). "Al Qaeda Operations Planner Saleh al-Somali Believed Dead in Drone Strike: Believed Killed Tuesday Along Lawless Tribal Areas of Western Pakistan". ABC News. Archived from the original on 1 February 2010.
The senior al Qaeda operative killed in a drone strike in Pakistan earlier this week was Saleh al-Somali, a major operations planner for the terrorist group, ABC News has learned.
- ^
Matt Apuzzo (12 February 2010). "Evolving US strategy widens assault on terrorists". Associated Press. Archived from the original on 17 February 2010.
Senior al-Qaida operatives Saleh al-Somali and Abdallah Sa'id were killed in airstrikes in December.
- ^
David Ignatius (17 February 2010). "What the partisan squabbles miss on Obama's terror response". Washington Post. Archived from the original on 10 November 2012.
These raids have ravaged the top tier of al-Qaeda's lieutenants. The victims include Saleh al-Somali, the chief of external operations, who was killed Dec. 8; Abdullah Said al-Libi, the chief of operations in Pakistan, who was killed Dec. 17; and Tahir Yuldashev, the leader of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, who was killed in August.
- ^ "Al Qaeda Operations Planner Saleh Al-Somali Believed Dead in Drone Strike". ABC News. Retrieved 15 October 2022.
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