No one left in the terrorist organization can replace the expertise al-Qaida has lost in the clandestine attack in Pakistan, the official says.
View full sizeAl-Qaida's second-in-command Abu Yahya al-Libi, seen here in a video still from 2007, was killed in a U.S. drone strike in Pakistan today, according to a U.S. official.The death of Abu Yahya al-Libi is a significant blow to the terror network, which has lost a string of top leaders at the hands of the American drone program.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence matters, says that no one left in al-Qaida comes close to replacing the expertise al-Qaida has just lost.
White House spokesman Jay Carney confirmed al-Libi's death, but would not say how he died.
Al-Libi would be the latest in the dozen-plus senior commanders removed in the clandestine U.S. war against al-Qaida since Navy SEALs killed Osama bin Laden last year. Al-Libi, a hero in militant circles for his 2005 escape from an American military prison in Afghanistan, was elevated to al-Qaida's No. 2 spot when Ayman al-Zawahri replaced the slain bin Laden.
