The death of Atiyah Abd al-Rahman in an Aug. 22 drone attack in Pakistan may appear to be just another in the revolving-door fatalities among al-Qaeda’s operations chiefs. But it was a crucial blow to the core group that once surrounded Osama bin Laden. Rahman was bin Laden’s channel to the world. Their correspondence was the most important prize taken from bin Laden’s compound when he was killed May 2 . They talked about everything: strategy, personnel, operations, political setbacks. Whatever thread still held al-Qaeda together passed from bin Laden through to Rahman. Read full article > >

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David Ignatius:
A body blow against al-Qaeda

A suspected US drone attack kills four militants in north-western Pakistan, local intelligence officials said.

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US drone ‘kills four’ in Pakistan

Five people die in a US drone attack in north-western Pakistan on the final day of a year that has seen a surge in the number of such attacks.

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Five die in Waziristan drone raid

The UK Foreign Office says it is investigating reports two white British al-Qaeda members have been killed in a suspected US drone attack in Pakistan.

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Drone attack ‘kills two Britons’

At least five militants are killed in a US drone attack in north-western Pakistan, local intelligence officials say.

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Pakistan drone attack kills five

At least five suspected militants are killed in a drone attack in Pakistan, as officials link recent strikes to an alleged al-Qaeda plot to attack Europe.

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‘Five killed’ in new drone attack

A British terror suspect killed in a drone attack was being groomed to head an al-Qaeda splinter group in the UK, the BBC’s Newsnight learns.

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Drone death man ‘UK terror chief’

At least eight al-Qaeda militants – some of whom were German nationals – are killed in a drone attack in Pakistan, officials tell the BBC.

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‘Germans killed’ in drone attack