Al-Qaeda’s deputy, accused of helping to fight the 1998 bombings on two US embassies in Africa, was killed in Iran in August by Israeli activists acting at the behest of the United States, the New York Times reported on Friday. citing intelligence officials.
Abdullah Ahmed Abdullah, who went from Nom de Guerre Abu Muhammad al-Masri, was shot dead by two men on a motorcycle in Tehran more than three months ago, the US newspaper reported.
The assassination of al-Masri, believed to be the likely successor to al-Qaeda’s current leader, Ayman al-Zawahri, was carried out by Israeli agents at the behest of the US, four intelligence officials told the Times.
It is unclear what role the US played in the assassination of the Egyptian-born fighter on August 7, the newspaper added. The US authorities had persecuted al-Masri and other al-Qaida members in Iran for years, it said.
A US official, who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity, declined to confirm details in the Times story or to say whether there was any US involvement. The White House National Security Council did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Al-Masri was killed along with his daughter, the widow of Osama bin Laden’s son Hamza bin Laden, the Times reported.
Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, who orchestrated the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States, was killed in a US attack in Pakistan in 2011.
Al-Masri was named the FBI’s “Most Wanted Terrorist” list and charged with crimes related to the bombings of the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, which killed 224 people and injured hundreds.
Comments are closed.