Abu Ubaida al-Masri, Senior Al Qaeda Leader, Reported Dead in Pakistan

By Andrew Cochran

Fox News reports that a U.S. official confirmed that senior Al Qaeda operative and bomb expert Abu Ubaida al-Masri (a.k.a "Ubaidah" or "Obaidah") has died of natural causes. We discussed al-Masri's ascension within Al Qaeda in April 2007 as part of the shift to a second generation of leadership in the face of worldwide pressure. You can read more details of his life in this recent profile in the Los Angeles Times. Al-Masri was one of the top 10 leaders in Al Qaeda and reportedly played a key role in the recruiting and training of the London 7/7/05 bombers, preparing the 2006 UK airline plot, and planning recent attacks in Afghanistan and Waziristan. Evan Kohlmann posted in September 2005 on the apperance of London 7/7/05 suicide bomber Mohammed Sadiq Khan with Al Qaeda's #2, Ayman al-Zawahri, in a video taped before the attack. That video dispelled any doubts that the attack was an Al Qaeda operation. Al-Masri's death is a positive development, but if it were from hepatitis as reported, Al Qaeda had plenty of time to prepare a successor.

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