Afghan security forces have killed Abu Muhsin al-Masri, a senior Al-Qaeda leader who was on the FBI’s list, Afghanistan’s National Directorate of Security (NDS) said on Saturday, according to Reuters.
Al-Masri has been charged in the United States with having provided material support and resources to a foreign terrorist organization, and conspiracy to kill US nationals.
Believed to be al Qaeda’s second-in-command, Al-Masri was killed during a special operation in Ghazni province, the NDS said.
The FBI declined to comment. Al-Masri, who also went by the name Husam Abd-al-Ra’uf, was an Egyptian national, according to the FBI. Last month, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said fewer than 200 Al-Qaeda terrorists remain in Afghanistan.
Earlier this week, the US Army said it had carried out a drone strike against Al-Qaeda leaders in northwest Syria near the border. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 14 jihadists were killed in the strike, including five foreigners and six commanders.
Three years ago, a drone strike led by the US-coalition killed the deputy leader of Al-Qaeda, Abu al-Khayr al-Masri. That year, an American air strike killed another Al-Qaeda leader in northern Syria, Mohammad Habib Boussadoun al-Tunisi
