A major al Qaeda operative of Arab origin was among the five militants killed in a suspected US missile strike in north-west Pakistan, a senior security official told AFP Wednesday. Security sources identified the militant as Abdullah Azam Al-Saudi, a senior member in Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda network.
"He was a senior commander of al Qaeda and was involved in recruiting and training of fighters," the senior official said. He is the second high-profile al Qaeda operative killed in recent US missile strikes in Pakistan's rugged tribal region bordering Afghanistan.
Egyptian al Qaeda operative Abu Jihad al-Masri, described by the US as the terror network's propaganda chief, was killed in a missile strike in Pakistan in the early hours of November 1. He was among several rebels killed when two missiles fired by a suspected US spy drone hit a truck in the North Waziristan tribal region bordering Afghanistan, security officials said.