Al Qaeda emir for Kunar, deputy, and facilitator killed in airstrikes

Districts of Kunar. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By Bill Roggio - August 5, 2012 - LWJ

The Coalition confirmed that al Qaeda's leader for Kunar province and his deputy were killed in Friday's airstrike in the Watahpur district. Both al Qaeda leaders were Pakistani citizens, the International Security Assistance Force told The Long War Journal. Additionally, an al Qaeda facilitator who ran IED training camps was killed in a separate strike in Watahpur on the same day.

Mufti Assad, al Qaeda's emir for Kunar, and his deputy, Yusuf, were killed in the Aug. 3 airstrike in the key al Qaeda and Lashkar-e-Taiba hub of Watahpur, ISAF stated in a press release. Special operations forces called in an airstrike after engaging the al Qaeda force during a raid, ISAF said yesterday [see LWJ report, Al Qaeda-linked fighters killed in airstrike in Kunar].

Assad, who was also known as Mufti Punjabi, Abdul Qudus, and Sufyan, "controlled al-Qaeda terrorists operating in Kunar," ISAF said. "He led dozens of al Qaeda affiliated fighters throughout eastern Afghanistan and coordinated their attacks across the region."

Additionally Assad served as "an explosives expert who provided training to insurgents on how to construct and use improvised explosive devices."

Yusuf, al Qaeda's deputy emir for Kunar who was also known as Omar and Rayhman, was "an IED expert who directed insurgent attacks across eastern Afghanistan."

Assad and Yusuf "were both Pakistani" citizens, ISAF's Joint Command Media Operations told The Long War Journal.

ISAF also confirmed that Fatah Gul, an "al Qaeda facilitator" who ran IED training camps, was killed in a separate airstrike in Watahpur on Friday. Gul, who was also known as Inzir and Shahid, "provided safe haven to al Qaeda affiliated terrorists operating in eastern Afghanistan."

Gul "also ran terrorist training camps where insurgents learned how to conduct improvised explosive devices attacks," ISAF stated. Gul was an Afghan citizen, ISAF's Joint Command Media Operations told The Long War Journal.

Read more: http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2012/08/al_qaeda_emir_for_ku.php#ixzz22iU0zu23

Posted in: Afghanistan, alqaeda, International Security Assistance Force, Kunar, Kunar Province, Lashkar-e-Taiba, Watahpur