Al Qaeda Branch Says Senior Leader Ibrahim al-Rubeish Killed in U.S. Drone Strike

Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula said Tuesday that one of its top leaders, a former Guantanamo Bay detainee who had a $5 million bounty on his head, had been killed in an American drone strike.

AQAP, al Qaeda’s branch in Yemen, issued a statement mourning the cleric, Ibrahim al-Rubeish.

Al-Rubeish fought in Afghanistan at Tora Bora, was captured and was sent to Guantanamo, according to Flashpoint Intelligence, a security company and NBC News partner. He was released in 2006 and joined AQAP, which U.S. officials have described as the most dangerous branch of the terror network.

The State Department lists al-Rubeish as 35 or 36 and describes him as a senior adviser for operational planning, including the planning of attacks.

• Who Are the Biggest Names on U.S. Terror Hit List?
• Al Qaeda Driven From Yemen City After Killing Soldiers

— Erin McClam