Afghanistan says it killed Al Qaeda leader who is on FBI 'Most Wanted Terrorists' list

Afghanistan claims to have killed al-Qaida figure Husam Abd al-Rauf, a man who is currently included on the FBI's list of "Most Wanted Terrorists."

Afghanistan's National Directorate of Security announced on Twitter that al-Rauf died in Ghazni province, and that one of its own people was killed in the operation, the Associated Press reported.

"Amanullah Kamrani, the deputy head of Ghazni’s provincial council, told The Associated Press that Afghan special forces led by the intelligence agency raided Kunsaf, which he described as being under Taliban control," the outlet reported. "On the village’s outskirts, they stormed an isolated home and killed seven suspected militants in a firefight, including al-Rauf, Kamrani said."

The red-headed al-Rauf, an Egyptian national, reportedly acted as media chief for al-Qaida. In December 2018, federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York filed a warrant for al-Rauf’s arrest, charging him with giving support to a foreign terrorist organization, and conspiring to kill Americans. The FBI put him on its “Most Wanted Terrorists” list.

The U.S. has been seeking to withdraw its troops from Afghanistan, a move supported by President Donald Trump.