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Officials said Abu Yasir conducted numerous attacks against Iraqi and
U.S. forces, including the improvised explosive device strike on Jan. 28
that killed five American soldiers. They said Abu Yasir worked for an Al
Qaida
commander detained by the U.S. military on Feb. 18.
Abu Yasir was said to have been part of the Al Qaida effort to rebuild
the insurgency network in Mosul. Officials said he arrived in Mosul in
August 2007 and was
appointed cell leader in the southeast portion of the city.
"Abu Yasir Al Saudi, a Saudi Arabian national, was a close associate of
numerous terrorist leaders, to include the AQI senior leader for the
northern Iraq networks and the overall AQI senior leader, Abu Ayyub Al
Masri," the military said.
Officials said Abu Yasir was responsible for orchestrating as well as
participating in strikes throughout Mosul. One of the foiled attacks
included the assembly of an IED in a 5,000-pound vehicle.
"Abu Yasir Al Saudi's death is a significant setback to Al Qaida in
Iraq's efforts in Mosul," coalition spokesman Capt. Vic Beck said. "Iraqi
and coalition force operations are degrading the AQI networks in Mosul where
we have captured or killed 142 Al Qaida terrorists since January."
The military said a close associate of Abu Yasir was also killed. The
dead insurgent was identified as Hamdan, another Saudi national who
coordinated the entry of Al Qaida operatives into Mosul and led a regional
anti-aircraft ring.
"Al Qaida is incredibly resilient," U.S. military commander Gen. David
Petraeus said on Sunday. "And they are receiving people and supplies through
Syria — although numbers through Syria are down as much as 50 percent."
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