By Al-Fassel | 2024-03-28

The United States is offering a reward of up to $6 million for information leading to the identification or location of new al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) leader Saad ben Atef al-Awlaki.

Al-Awlaki took the helm of al-Qaeda's franchise in Yemen in March, after the death of former AQAP leader Khaled al-Batarfi, according to Yemeni sources close to the group.

He will seek to unite AQAP -- among the most dangerous branches of the global network -- and change course after a steep decline, they said.

Born in 2009 from the merger of al-Qaeda's Yemeni and Saudi factions, AQAP has claimed numerous large-scale terror attacks in Yemen and beyond.

But internal crises and successful operations that have targeted AQAP's leadership have weakened the group in recent years.

In January 2020, AQAP suffered a major blow when its leader Qassim al-Rimi was killed in an air strike in the Wadi Obeida district of Yemen's Marib province.

In the first two months of 2023, two senior AQAP leaders -- an explosives expert and the group's media chief -- were killed in air strikes in Marib, per a report last April 6 by the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED).

AQAP remains a threat

Al-Awlaki, a member of AQAP's shura council, has broad internal support from leaders who now look to him to mobilize fighters, Yemeni sources close to the group told AFP.

He also has good relations with powerful Yemeni tribes, particularly in the AQAP stronghold of Shabwa province, where he comes from, a tribal official said.

His predecessor, al-Batarfi, had tried to court Yemeni tribes amid an erosion of social support for the extremist group in Yemen, observers said.

The present decline in AQAP attacks is due to internal divisions, "a financial crisis" and fighting against rival forces in Yemen, Assem al-Sabri, an expert on extremist groups, told AFP.

As the new leader, al-Awlaki will work to close the group's ranks, al-Sabri said.

A United Nations report published in January said the extremist group had faced operational and financial challenges but "persists as a threat."

"Although in decline, AQAP remains the most effective terrorist group in Yemen with intent to conduct operations in the region and beyond," it said, also noting collaboration between the group and the Houthis.

The Houthis have enemies in common with al-Qaeda and some common objectives, analysts say.

The Iran-backed group has been accused of cooperating with AQAP on a number of occasions to carry out attacks in Yemen and has previously released al-Qaeda prisoners from prisons under their control.

In addition to the reward for information on al-Awlaki, the United States is offering a $10 million reward for information leading to the arrest of al-Qaeda leader Saif al-Adel.

Al-Adel has worked off and on with Iran for decades and is now understood to be based in that country.