By order of US President Trump: US kills Al Qaeda leader Al Rimi

On Trump's orders, U.S. forces killed the leader of an al-Qaeda branch in Yemen. Kasim Al-Rimi has been at the top of the terror network there since 2015.

• The United States has killed Kassim Al-Rimi , the leader of an al Qaeda branch in Yemen .
• The terrorists received a reward of up to ten million dollars .
• It is not yet known exactly when the military strike took place.

Update at 11.40 a.m .: In a drone attack on the orders of Donald Trump , US military forces killed the leader of an offshoot of the terrorist organization Al Qaeda in Yemen . A few hours after the White House announced the death of Kassim Al-Rimi , further information about the terrorist network there was made public. According to information from the German Press Agency, the Al Qaeda branch had suffered several setbacks in Yemen in recent years.

High-ranking executives, experts in the construction of explosive devices and members responsible for propaganda have been the target of US drone strikes and special commandos . According to observers, al-Qaeda subsidiary AQAP remains extremely capable and determined to attack western targets . Most recently, AQAP claimed responsibility for the fatal attack on a U.S. military base in Florida in December . A shooter had killed three people and injured eight others. In Yemen, the group tries to remain undercover and to mix with the local population.

United States kills Al Qaeda leader Kassim Al-Rimi in drone attack in Yemen

First report from February 7th at 6:01 a.m .:

Washington - The United States killed the leader of the Al Qaeda branch of the Islamist terrorist network there during an operation in Yemen . The attack was ordered by US President Donald Trump , the White House said on Thursday (local time). Kassim Al-Rimi has headed the Al Qaeda terror group on the Arabian Peninsula (Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula / AQAP) since June 2015. His predecessor was also killed in a US drone attack in Yemen. The government headquarters in Washington did not disclose exactly when Al-Rimi was killed. The killing of Al-Rimis was announced by the White House on Friday night (CET) via Twitter, among other things.

At the direction of President Trump, the US conducted a counterterrorism operation in Yemen that successfully eliminated Qasim al-Rimi, a founder and the leader of al-Qa'ida in the Arabian Peninsula and a deputy to al-Qa'ida leader Ayman al -Zawahiri. https://t.co/ayOmTpzH04

Al Qaeda strike: Al Rimi received a $ 10 million reward

Al-Rimi was previously the military chief of the terrorist group , which is considered the most powerful branch of the Al Qaeda network *. The terrorists received a reward of up to $ 10 million . The US authorities have linked him to numerous attacks. These included the attack on the US embassy in Yemen in 2008 .

Al-Rimi worked for Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan, the White House said. Under Al-Rimi, AQAP had committed “unscrupulous violence” against civilians in Yemen and tried to launch numerous attacks against the United States and its armed forces. His death had come closer to eliminating threats to national security by groups such as Al Qaeda.

Strike against Al Qaeda: Already at the end of January there were rumors that Al Rimi was killed

The New York Times had already reported in late January that Al-Rimi could have been killed in an airstrike. Trump * had posted reports about it on Twitter, but confirmation was pending.

Trump is likely to use the attack to underline his determination to fight terrorism. In October, U.S. military special forces tracked down the leader of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist militia in northwest Syria. Trump also boasts of the US air attack on top Iranian general Ghassem Soleimani * . After his death in January, tensions in the Middle East escalated dangerously *.

In Yemen, the US armed forces have been flying drone strikes on Al Qaeda members for years. The US secret services also use drones, but usually do not confirm their use. The terrorist organization benefits from the chaotic conditions in the civil war country.

* Merkur.de is part of the nationwide Ippen Digital editors network