Few hours after the confirmation of the death of Al-Qaeda’s leader in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), Qasim Al Rimi, the Al-Qaeda branch in Yemen named his successor, Khalid Saeed Al Batarfi.
Khalid Saeed Al Batarfi also known as Abu Al Miqdad Al Kindi is now the emir (leader) of the AQAP. He had been a Saudi Arabian militant and a senior member of AQAP in Yemeni’s Hadramout province. Batarfi also served on AQAP’s shura council, (Group’s high-ranking figures key for decision making).
The new AQAP leader has been a member of Al-Qaeda for over 20 years. Batarfi began his journey with the Al-Qaeda terrorist group in Afghanistan in 1999. He was trained at the Al Farouq camp before fighting alongside the Taliban during the 2001 U.S. incursion.
Born in Saudi Arabia, little is known about his childhood. In 2010, Batarfi took up the cause of AQAP in Yemen, leading terror fighters in taking over the country’s southern Abyan Province. Batarfi was later named AQAP’s emir in charge of Abyan province following the death of AQAP leader Nasir Al Wuhayshi.
The new AQAP emir also spent a spell in prison alongside AQAP mates. Batarfi served 4 years in Al Mukalla central prison until AQAP terrorist fighters raided the city in April 2015 and set a number of senior AQAP’s operatives free, including Batarfi, according security source in Al-Mukalla.
His terror operations in Yemen earned the interest of the U.S. In June 2016, following a US strike on AQAP base in Yemen, Batarfi promised revenge, warning that Al-Qaeda would take revenge on U.S. by targeting its economy besides attacking other interests.
Before coming into limelight in 2017, Batarfi had featured prominently in AQAP propaganda videos, offering religious guidance (radical teachings).
After the U.S. announced that it would recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, Batarfi appeared in an AQAP video in January 2018, threatening the United States and the Jewish people.
Following this provocation, U.S. finally took action on January 23, 2018, whereby the U.S. Department of State designated Batarfi as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist.
In February 2020, Khalid Saeed Al Batarfi was named as AQAP new emir in the Arab peninsula succeeding Al Rimi whose death was confirmed by Al-Qaeda.
