A UN Intelligence report suggests that the Egyptian Saif al Adel is the ‘de facto’ leader of Al Qaeda

14 Feb. (EUROPA PRESS) –

A United Nations Intelligence report suggests that the Egyptian Saif al Adel, considered the ‘number two’ of Al Qaeda and who currently resides in Iran, is the ‘de facto’ leader of the terrorist group.

Al Adel, who is part of the list of the most wanted criminals by the FBI, would be the “de facto and indisputable leader of the group”, according to the opinion of different Member States during security discussions in the months of November and December, as It emerges from a report that has circulated in recent days.

“His leadership cannot be declared due to al Qaeda’s sensitivity to the Afghan Taliban’s concerns about not recognizing the death of (Ayman al) Zawahiri in Kabul and the fact of (al Adel’s) presence in the Islamic Republic of Iran”, reads the document, collected by the newspaper ‘The Guardian’.

Specifically, the text indicates that a member state, presumably Iran, opposed the inclusion in the report of a reference to the presence of Al Adel in this country, since Tehran has repeatedly denied having provided support to the terrorist group.

For the time being, al Qaeda has yet to confirm the death of its leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri, in a US drone strike on July 31 in Kabul. After the death of its founder, Usama bin Laden, in a US operation in Abotabad (Pakistan) on May 2, 2011, the terrorist group took barely a month to announce that its ‘number two’, the Egyptian Al Zawahiri, was taking the reins.

Experts agree that the ‘natural’ heir to Al Zawahiri would be Al Adel, who could try to leave Iran for neighboring Afghanistan, where the new Taliban authorities are Al Qaeda’s best ally and where the leadership of the organization.

“Zawahiri’s presence in the center of Kabul demonstrated a continuous and cooperative relationship between Al Qaeda and the Taliban,” describes the report collected by the aforementioned newspaper, adding that Al Adel’s presence in a Shiite country “raised theological and operational questions difficult” within the group.