Khaled Saleh al-Din Zidane, a high-ranking member of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and son of the group’s de facto leader Saif al-Adel, has died.
AQAP’s official magazine, al-Malahim, confirmed his death without detailing the circumstances.
Khaled, 29, was heavily involved in the group’s operations and strategy, working closely with his father.
He was last known to be in Yemen as his father’s personal representative.
Born in 1995, Khaled played a vital role in recruitment, media, and managing internal conflicts within AQAP, following in his father’s footsteps.
He authored an anti-American article in the group’s magazine and provided a graph of Yemen’s public debt from 2000 to 2024.
His death represents a significant loss for AQAP and a major setback for his father, who is believed to be in Iran.
Saif al-Adel, originally Mohammed Salah al-Din Zaidan, is a veteran jihadist with a long history in terrorism.
He joined Egyptian Islamic Jihad in the 1980s, later aligning with al-Qaeda and becoming a key operational figure.
Following the death of Ayman al-Zawahiri in 2022, Saif is recognized as al-Qaeda’s de facto leader.
Saif, once an Egyptian military officer, was expelled in 1987 and subsequently joined al-Qaeda.
He played a significant role in the group’s media and military operations, including the production of Osama Bin Laden’s videos.
After the 9/11 attacks, he received asylum in Iran, where he was under surveillance by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). There, he directed al-Qaeda’s efforts against U.S. and coalition forces.
A 2023 United Nations report indicated Saif al-Adel as al-Qaeda’s de facto leader, though not officially proclaimed due to political and operational sensitivities.
He is suspected of involvement in the 1998 U.S. embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania and remains on the FBI’s Most Wanted list.
