Two Al-Qaeda fugitives killed in US drone strike

MIRAN SHAH—Rashid Rauf the suspected ringleader of a 2006 plot to blow up trans-atlantic airliners using liquid explosives by using liquid explosive was among the 5 who were killed in a another missile strikes by US drones in North Waziristan.
Local people in North Waziristan told that US drones targeted a local house in area of Ali Khel, Tehsil Mir Ali at 3:00 am on night between Friday and Saturday. 5 people lost their lives while six other were wounded in the missile attack, they added.
A foreign news agency claimed that Pakistani origin Rashid Rauf suspected of masterminding the 2006 airline bomb plot and Al-Qeada leader Abu Al-Asar were among the five victims of an attack launched by a U.S. pilotless drone aircraft in the North Waziristan tribal region.
Rashid Rauf was arrested by Police on August 09, 2006 from Pakistan but he escaped from their custody on December 2007. Independent sources did not confirm the death of Rashid Rauf in the missile attack. Only a security Personnel requesting anonymity while interacting with media confirmed the news. US drones fired guided missile on a house owned by Khaliq Noor. It is feared that the death toll is likely to rise. It may be recalled that 5 people lost their lives when US drones launched attack in District Bannu for the first time two days ago. Rashid Rauf, a British militant with al Qaeda links, was killed along with an Egyptian by a suspected U.S. missile strike in northwest Pakistan on Saturday, Pakistani television channels and intelligence officers said.
Rauf, the suspected ringleader of a 2006 plot to blow up transatlantic airliners using liquid explosives, was among five victims of an attack believed to have been launched by a U.S. pilotless drone aircraft in the North Waziristan tribal region. The plot, which was uncovered with the help of Pakistani intelligence, had the potential to kill on the scale of the September 11, 2001 al Qaeda attacks and resulted in tighter controls on cabin luggage hand-carried on board by air passengers worldwide.
Intelligence officers in northwest Pakistan, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters that Rauf, who escaped from custody after appearing in an Islamabad court last December, had been killed, though there was no official confirmation. They named the dead Egyptian as Abu Zubair al-Masri. Arab casualties are usually taken as a sign of an al Qaeda presence. Several Pakistani news channels also reported the death of the 27-year-old Rauf and his Egyptian cohort.
A British Foreign Office spokesman said: “We are investigating the reports.” Taliban spokesman Ahmedullah Ahmedi issued a statement in North Waziristan saying all those killed in the missile strike were locals and vowed revenge would be taken on the government outside tribal lands. British Foreign Secretary David Miliband has said he will be visiting Pakistan next week, though the exact dates have been withheld for security reasons.
Arrested in Pakistan in August 2006, Rauf, who is of Pakistani origin, had travelled to Pakistan in 2002 after the murder of an uncle in Britain. His extradition was originally sought by Britain in connection with the murder.
During his time in Pakistan, Rauf married a relative of one of Pakistan’s most notorious militant leaders, Azhar Masood Azhar, the head of Jaish-e-Mohammad. While Jaish has been principally focused on fighting in Indian Kashmir, some splinter groups joined al Qaeda’s cause.

—Agencies