Mustafa Abu al-Yazid
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Mustafa Ahmed Muhammad Uthman Abu al-Yazid (born December 17, 1955),[1] often shortened to Mustafa Abu al-Yazid and also known as Sheikh Saeed, is an Egyptian Islamic militant and the current al-Qaeda commander of operations in Afghanistan.[2]
Al-Yazid was imprisoned for three years in Egypt because of involvement in the assassination of Egpytian President Anwar El Sadat in 1981. During this time or shortly after he joined Egyptian Islamic Jihad, and in 1988 went to Afghanistan where he played a role in founding al-Qaeda.[1]
Al-Yazid has two wives and several sons and daughters, including one married to the son of Sheikh Omar Abd al-Rahman.[1]
On December 27 al-Yazid is said to have claimed responsibility for the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, telling Adnkronos International that "We terminated the most precious American asset which vowed to defeat [the] mujahideen." The article further claims that al-Yazid stated that al-Qaeda second-in-command Ayman al-Zawahiri ordered the killing in October 2007.[3] The Asia Times Online also reported that it had received a claim of responsibility from al-Yazid by telephone.[4] US intelligence officials have said that they cannot confirm this claim of responsibility.[5]
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Michael Scheuer (July 3, 2007) Al-Qaeda's New Leader in Afghanistan: A Profile of Abu al-Yazid . Terrorism Focus Volume 4, Issue 21. The Jamestown Foundation. Washington, DC. p. 5-7.
- ^ Whitlock, Craig; Ladaa, Munir. "Al-Qaeda's New Leadership", The Washington Post, 2006. Retrieved on 2007-12-28.
- ^ "Pakistan: Al-Qaeda claims Bhutto's death", Adnkronos International, 2007-12-27. Retrieved on 2007-12-27.
- ^ Shahzad, Syed Saleem. "Al-Qaeda claims Bhutto killing", Asia Times Online, 2007-12-27. Retrieved on 2007-12-27.
- ^ Ross, Brian. "U.S. Checking al Qaeda Claim of Killing Bhutto", ABC News: The Blotter, 2007-12-27. Retrieved on 2007-12-27.
