 A prominent member of al Qaeda was killed in fighting with U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan, the group said in a statement posted on an Islamist website on Sunday. Abu Suleiman al-Otaibi, formerly one of the group's leaders in Iraq, was killed in a "fierce battle with the worshipers of the cross" in Paktia, it said without giving the date of the battle. Another al Qaeda member, identified as Abu Dejana al-Qahtani, also died in the fighting, it added.
| I'm guessing this is a different al-Qahtani from the one who was reported dead in Iraq a couple years ago. If it's the same one, I hope they drove a stake through his heart this time, so he doesn't end up getting killed in China or Morocco a couple years from now. |
Afghan officials said they had no information on the report. But the government earlier said in a statement that "five opposition" fighters were killed on Saturday in Paktia during an operation involving Afghan and U.S.-led troops. The leader of al Qaeda in Afghanistan Mustafa Abu al-Yazid said Qahtani left Iraq about six months ago without giving further details. Otaibi was the head of the judiciary at the self-styled Islamic State in Iraq, a group started by al Qaeda and fellow Sunni militant groups.
| Both are fairly common Saudi names, so it's probably appropriate that they're part of the Islamic State in Iraq. |
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