According to a report, al qaeda’s Yemen branch has announced the death of its leader. Reportedly, a video published by al qaeda in the arabian peninsula (aqap) showed Khalif Batarfi, a Saudi arabian man in his forties wrapped in a funeral shroud and the group’s banner. According to the report, in 2018 the u.s. designated Khalif Batarfi a global terrorist and placed a bounty on him of $5 million.
Reportedly, the group’s new chief is Saad bin Atef al Awiaki, the u.n. said the two men led conflicting wings with Saad Awiaki gaining the support of some tribes.
According to the report, aqap was considered the most active and dangerous regional affiliate of al-qaeda, it planned airline bomb attacks against the u.s., claimed to be behind the 2015 bomb attacks in France that killed 17 people and a 2019 attack in the u.s. that killed three people.
Reportedly, aqap sustained setbacks and leadership losses as a result of anti terrorist initiatives; a drone attack in 2023 killed a leader and another man who supervised media and other matters. According to the report, the group’s fighters have a strong presence in Sabya and Abyan in southern Yemen, they have attacked government forces and the seperatist southern transitional council.