White House Confirms Death of Infamous Al Qa’ida Bombmaker

The White House has confirmed that Ibrahim al-Asiri, al Qa’ida’s master bombmaker, has been killed. It was widely suspected beginning in August 2018 that Al-Asiri was dead, but until now there had not been official confirmation of his death. In its announcement, the White House said he had been killed two years ago in a counterterrorism operation in Yemen. Al-Asiri was known for having perfected miniaturized bombs with little to no metal content, making them difficult for screening processes to detect. He is believed to have been behind such high-profile plots as the “underwear bomb” attempt that intended to detonate a flight over the U.S. in 2009 and “the printer bomb” that involved planting explosive devices in printers sent from Yemen to the U.S. It is unlikely that his expertise died with him, as terrorism experts believe he trained a number of apprentices and that his tradecraft has been exported to other terrorist groups. Read the statement at the White House.