Approximately six weeks ago, in June, military officials began to get antsy that the opportunity to hit their Yemeni targets was slipping away. There had been only two drone strikes in Yemen in May and two more in June, and then the strikes stopped.
But then, in late July, the U.S. intercepted an electronic communication in which two of al Qaeda’s top world leaders, Ayman al-Zawahiri and Nasir al-Wahishi, agreed they wanted to launch a major attack on a Muslim holiday known as Laylat al-Qadr. This year the holiday, also known as the “Night of Power,” fell on the weekend of August 3 and 4.
When the message was intercepted, said the official, things changed. After seven weeks without a drone launch in Yemen, the White House approved nine over the course of two weeks, starting on July 27. The targets were largely lower level operatives.
The first attack killed six militants in a convoy in a town controlled by al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. None were in leadership positions. More strikes followed on July 30 and Aug. 1, 6, 7, 8 and 10.
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