U.S. airstrikes killed five senior al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) terrorists in the latest phase of its air campaign against the terrorist group, CENTCOM announced Friday.
The strikes occurred on Nov. 20 and military analysts worked to confirm the deaths. The terrorists included “Mujahid al-Adani, an AQAP Shabwah leader, was killed in the strikes, along with al-Bayda-based facilitator Abu Layth al-Sanaani and three AQAP associates,” CENTCOM noted.
CENTCOM continued, “Al-Adani, also known as Mohammad Shukri, previously served as an AQAP military leader in Aden and remained responsible for planning and conducting terrorist attacks against Yemeni and coalition forces. Al-Adani maintained a significant influence within AQAP as well as close ties to other AQAP senior leaders.”
Al-Qaida in the Arabian peninsula remains the most active affiliate within the al-Qaida network. The group operates in the midst of the chaos of the Yemeni civil war and controls some territory. The group is known for heavily concentrating on external operations against the U.S. and its Western allies, and is estimated to have nearly 3,000 fighters in Yemen.
President Donald Trump has dramatically increased the U.S. effort against AQAP since taking office. Trump’s first week in office was marked by a botched late January U.S. Navy SEAL raid and he has declared the country an “area of active hostilities” to allow the military to pursue targets without White House approval.
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