Death of Abu Hafs al-Najdi, also known as Abdul Ghani, in early April is 'significant milestone' for US-led coalition
One of the most important al-Qaida fighters in Afghanistan was killed earlier this month, the US-led coalition has revealed.
Nato's International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) said on Tuesday the killing of Abu Hafs al-Najdi, also known as Abdul Ghani, in an airstrike in eastern Afghanistan was a "significant milestone in the disruption of al-Qaida" in the country.
The veteran Saudi Arabian militant was on an Isaf hitlist since at least 2007. He was killed on 13 April, along with several other insurgents in the Dangam district of Kunar province, a heavily wooded and mountainous area that neighbours Pakistan. Ghani was finally pinpointed after he met another top al-Qaida leader named Waqas, who was also killed.
In the last few months, fears have grown that the group has staged a major comeback after falling into near irrelevance in Afghanistan.
For some time intelligence analysts have said the number of al-Qaida fighters in the country had fallen to perhaps fewer than100, and that what remains of the group that carried out the 9/11 attacks was either killed, captured or restricted to operating over the border in the comparative safe havens of Pakistan.
However some reports have claimed the group is regrouping and even establishing training camps.
It is thought to be particularly active in Kunar and other areas of north-eastern Afghanistan, where US troops have been forced to abandon entire valleys after Isaf commanders concluded that after years of bloody stalemate they were not making any headway against an entrenched resistance to the foreign presence.
A statement by Isaf said the Islamist militant group remained a "top priority for Afghan and coalition forces", and that 25 al-Qaida fighters have been killed in the last month alone.
Ghani, who the coalition said was the second-highest priority insurgent in all Afghanistan, operated primarily in the province of Kunar.
Isaf said he directed al-Qaida operations in the province, as well as training fighters and obtaining weapons. He was also responsible for organising high-profile attacks, including on Isaf bases, and was thought to be responsible for a suicide attack that killed a tribal elder on the same morning of his own death.
It added that he also played a crucial role in keeping a flow of money to fighters operating on both sides of the Afghan-Pakistani border.
"Abdul Ghani was able to streamline control of assets and provide considerably more funding to insurgent fighters," Isaf said. "This led to increased funds to provide weapons, explosives and equipment to multiple insurgent attack cells."