Washington - A US airstrike in Iraq this week killed a top al-Qaeda figure in what the US military described Friday as a major blow to the organization responsible for most of the horrific attacks against civilians. A US F-16 fighter dropped a bomb on a building where Abu Usama al- Tunisi was meeting with other al-Qaeda operatives on Tuesday in the city of Musayyib, Brigadier General Joseph Anderson told reporters in Washington via teleconference from Baghdad.
"This was a dangerous terrorist who is no longer part of al-Qaeda in Iraq," Anderson said. "His death deals a significant blow to their operation."
US forces entered the building in the city southwest of Baghdad and confirmed al-Tunisi was killed along with three other al-Qaeda agents, Anderson said.
Anderson said al-Tunisi was closely linked to and the likely successor of the top al-Qaeda leader in Iraq, Abu Ayyub al-Masri. A Tunisian, he oversaw the flow of foreign terrorists into Iraq, the general said.
A series of US raids resulted in the capture of al-Tunisi associates and led coalition forces to his location, Anderson said. Anderson said they found a note handwritten by al-Tunisi that said he was "surrounded, communications have been cut and he's desperate for help," Anderson added.
