Al-Qaeda appoints new North Africa chief after France kills leader
Abu Obaida Yusuf al-Annabi succeeds Abdelmakel Droukdel, a founder of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb who was killed in June.
Al-Qaeda’s central and western North Africa branch has named Algerian Abu Obaida Yusuf al-Annabi as its leader after French military forces killed Abdelmalek Droukdel in June.
Annabi, also known as Sheikh Mujahid Yazid Mubarak, was formerly the head of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb’s (AQIM) council of dignitaries and has been on a US terrorism blacklist since 2015. He has been a vocal proponent of jihad against the French military’s ongoing counterterrorism mission in the Maghreb.
AQIM released a video announcing Annabi’s appointment and showing Droukdel’s body over the weekend, according to the SITE monitoring group, which tracks jihadist publications.
The group also confirmed that Beatrice Stoeckli, a Swiss missionary who was kidnapped in Mali in 2016, had died.
