The al-Qaeda operative believed to have been the mastermind behind the bombing of the USS Cole, has reportedly been killed in a US airstrike.

Jamel Ahmed Mohammed Ali Al-Badawi, blamed for organising the 2000 attack on the US navy destroyer that killed 17 Americans, was said to have been killed in a strike in Yemen.

CNN said the attack happened on Tuesday – something later confirmed by a US military spokesman who said an assessment was still being carried out.

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“We are aware of reports that Jamal al-Badawi was killed in a strike in Yemen,” Capt Bill Urban, US Central Command spokesman, told The Independent in a statement.

“US forces conducted a precision strike January 1st in the Marib governate, Yemen, targeting Jamal al-Badawi, a legacy Al Qaeda operative in Yemen involved in the USS Cole bombing.

“US forces are still assessing the results of the strike following a deliberate process to confirm his death.”

The attack on the USS Cole, as it was docked in the Yemeni port of Aden, was the deadliest on a US naval vessel since 1987. In addition to the 17 sailors killed, a further 39 were injured.

Following the attacks of 9/11, the bombing of the USS Cole was viewed, retrospectively, as one of several incidents, along with the 1998 bombing of the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, in which al-Qaeda had been flexing its muscles.

Al-Badawi, one of six people detained for the attack on the USS Cole, was captured twice in Yemen and sentenced to death. He was also indicted by a US court, but twice he escaped from custody, most recently in 2006

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At that time, the FBI placed him on its most wanted list and offered a reward of $5m for information leading to his capture.

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“Jamel Ahmed Mohammed Ali Al-Badawi is wanted in connection with the October 12, 2000, bombing of the USS Cole in Aden, Yemen,” the FBI said.

“This attack resulted in the deaths of 17 American sailors. Al-Badawi was being held by Yemeni authorities in connection with the attack when he escaped from prison in April of 2003. Al-Badawi was recaptured in March of 2004, but again escaped Yemeni custody on February 3, 2006.”

CNN said US officials said that the airstrike took place in Yemen’s Ma’rib governorate. It said an administration official said that al-Badawi was struck while driving alone in a vehicle and that the US assessed there was not any collateral damage. The network did not say how the US had come to this assessment.

Abd al Rahim al-Nashiri, another al-Qaeda militant linked to the bombing, has been in US custody since 2002 at Guantanamo Bay.

US military prosecutors have charged al-Nashiri with murder for allegedly planning the attack on the USS Cole.</s>
• A US airstrike in Yemen on Jan. 1 reportedly killed a notorious al-Qaeda operative.
• Jamel Ahmed Mohammed Ali Al-Badawi, who has been on the FBI’s list of most wanted terrorists, was killed in the strike, US officials confirmed to CNN and Voice of America.
• Al-Badawi is said to be the man behind the bombing off the USS Cole in 2000 that killed 17 American sailors.

A US airstrike in Yemen on New Year’s Day reportedly killed the terrorist mastermind believed to have orchestrated the deadly USS Cole bombing eighteen years ago.

Jamel Ahmed Mohammed Ali Al-Badawi, an al-Qaeda operative on the FBI’s most wanted list, was killed during a strike in Yemen’s Ma’rib Governorate, a US official told CNN. He was struck while driving alone. The US says there was no collateral damage.

That Al-Badawi was the target of Tuesday’s airstrike was confirmed by Voice of America, citing a defense official. US forces are reportedly still assessing the results of the strike.

The bombing of the USS Cole, an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, occurred while the warship was refueling at the harbor of Aden. On October 12, 2000, suicide bombers in a small boat filled with explosives attacked the ship, killing 17 US sailors and wounding another 39 people.

Al-Badawi has been picked up by Yemeni authorities multiple times since the bombing; however, he has repeatedly managed to escape justice.

After being arrested in December 2000, he escaped in 2003. He was apprehended a second time in 2004, but he managed to escape again two years later.

The FBI has been offering a reward of up to $5 million for information that would lead to his arrest.</s>A US airstrike in Yemen on New Year's Day reportedly killed the terrorist mastermind believed to have orchestrated the deadly USS Cole bombing eighteen years ago.

Jamel Ahmed Mohammed Ali Al-Badawi, an al-Qaeda operative on the FBI's most wanted list, was killed during a strike in Yemen's Ma'rib Governorate, a US official told CNN. He was struck while driving alone. The US says there was no collateral damage.

Al-Badawi's death in Tuesday's airstrike was also confirmed by Voice of America, citing a defense official.

The bombing of the USS Cole, an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, occurred while the warship was refueling at the harbor of Aden. On October 12, 2000, suicide bombers in a small boat filled with explosives attacked the ship, killing 17 US sailors and wounding another 39 people.

Aftermath of the bombing of the USS Cole on Oct. 12, 2000 AP Photo/Dimitri Messinis

Al-Badawi has been picked up by Yemeni authorities multiple times since the bombing; however, he has repeatedly managed to escape justice.

After being arrested in December 2000, he escaped in 2003. He was apprehended a second time in 2004, but he managed to escape again two years later.

The FBI has been offering a reward of up to $5 million for information that would lead to his arrest.</s>VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. - The brother of a Sailor who died in the 2000 attack on the Norfolk-based USS Cole spoke with News 3 after U.S. officials said the man responsible for the attack had been killed.

The attack resulted in the deaths of 17 American Sailors and the injuries of another 39 in October 2000 while the USS Cole was refueling at a port in Yemen.

Friday, U.S. officials said Jamel Ahmed Mohammed Ali Al-Badawi was recently killed during an airstrike in Yemen.

News 3 sat down with Jamal Gunn, whose brother, 22-year-old Signalman Seaman Cherone Louis Gunn, was one of the 17 Sailors killed.

“He was a great man,” said Jamal. He said his brother would have taken the world as his oyster and lived life to the fullest.

It’s been more than 18 years since the USS Cole was attacked in Yemen.

Related: Remembering the Sailors killed aboard the USS Cole 18 years later

Cherone’s relatives have a room decorated with pictures of him in his uniform, with his three brothers and a lot of military memorabilia in their Virginia Beach home.

Jamal got a text message from a news outlet about the airstrike that killed the terrorist that was behind the USS Cole bombing attack.

Officials say Al-Badawi was an al-Qaeda operative who had been on the FBI’s "Most Wanted Terrorists" list.

He was actually arrested soon after the bombing, but escaped from two prisons in Yemen. The state department was offering $5 million for information leading to his capture.

Jamal said he is frustrated that several suspects have been labeled the mastermind in the attack and added that he is distrustful of U.S. officials.

“The problem is we’re being told he’s the mastermind, but we’ve been told that they had the mastermind in custody, so which is the truth?” said Jamal.

In 2000, Al-Badawi and Fahd al-Quso were arrested for the bombing, and Abd al Rahim al-Nashiri was pointed out as a key player in the bombing. Al-Nashiri is currently being held in custody.

Jamal said he yearns for more information from the government and said they’re still waiting for justice.

“We want to make sure there’s full accountability and for justice across the board for those responsible for the attack and for those who allowed it to happen,” said Jamal. “We know that the person that we’ve had in custody for years now since 2003 - al-Nashiri - he’s been held in Guantánamo Bay and he is the one we’ve been told is the mastermind behind the attack, but now they say there is another mastermind. Who is it?”

The bombing of the USS Cole happened 11 months prior to the attack on September 11. Jamal believes more could have been done after the attack on the USS Cole to prevent future bombings and attacks.

He said most importantly, he wants his brother's memory to live on, along with the other 16 Sailors who were killed on the USS Cole.</s>WASHINGTON (AP) — An American military spokesman says a U.S. airstrike in Yemen targeted an al-Qaida operative accused of involvement in the attack on the USS Cole that killed 17 sailors.

The spokesman, Navy Capt. William Urban at U.S. Central Command headquarters, said Friday that the Jan. 1 airstrike targeted Jamal al-Badawi (all-bah-DAWY).

RELATED: 17th anniversary of the USS Cole bombing that killed two Coastal Bend Sailors

Urban said U.S. forces are attempting to confirm his death.

Al-Badawi is wanted in the United States for his role in the Oct. 12, 2000 attack on the Cole in the Yemeni port of Aden. He was indicted by a federal grand jury in 2003, charged with 50 counts of various terrorism offenses, including murder of U.S. nationals and murder of U.S. military personnel.</s>A U.S. airstrike in Yemen has targeted one of the alleged masterminds of the USS Cole bombing, which killed 17 sailors in 2000.

Navy Capt. Bill Urban, a spokesman for U.S. Central Command, said Friday that a precision airstrike in Yemen's Marib governorate on Tuesday targeted Jamal al-Badawi, one of six al-Qaida operatives convicted of the bombing and a fugitive on the FBI Most Wanted Terrorists list.

"U.S. forces are still assessing the results of the strike following a deliberate process to confirm his death," Urban said.

A defense official told VOA that the U.S. was waiting for the results of a DNA test before formally declaring al-Badawi deceased.

In October 2000, 17 American sailors from the Cole, a guided-missile destroyer, died in a suicide bomb attack at Aden harbor. Dozens more sailors were wounded. Al-Qaida claimed responsibility.

Al-Badawi was arrested by Yemeni authorities in 2000, escaped from a prison in 2003, was recaptured by Yemeni authorities in 2004 and escaped again in 2006.

Al-Badawi was charged with 50 counts of various terrorism offenses, including murder of U.S. nationals and murder of U.S. military personnel. In addition to his role in the bombing, he has been charged with attempting to attack a U.S. Navy vessel in January 2000.

Meanwhile, a U.S. military strike in al-Dayman, Yemen, on Friday targeted operatives for al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), according to an official.

There were 36 military airstrikes in Yemen in 2018, mostly targeting AQAP with a couple targeting IS forces in Yemen.</s>The man behind the 2000 attack on the USS Cole is believed to have been killed in a US airstrike in Yemen on Tuesday, according to a US administration official.

Jamel Ahmed Mohammed Ali Al-Badawi was an al-Qaeda operative who the US believes helped orchestrate the October 12, 2000, attack on the Norfolk based USS Cole that killed 17 American sailors.

The official said all intelligence indicators show al-Badawi was killed in a strike in Yemen as a result of a joint US military and intelligence operation.

US officials told CNN that the strike took place in Yemen’s Ma’rib Governorate.

The administration official said that al-Badawi was struck while driving alone in a vehicle and that the US assessed there was not any collateral damage.

Al-Badawi was on the FBI’s list of most wanted terrorists.

The Cole was attacked by suicide bombers in a small boat laden with explosives while in port in Aden, Yemen, for refueling. The attack also wounded 39 sailors.

The bombing was attributed to al-Qaeda and foreshadowed the attack on the US less than one year later on September 11, 2001.

Al-Badawi was arrested by Yemeni authorities in December of 2000 and held in connection with the Cole attack but he escaped from a prison in Yemen in April of 2003.

He was recaptured by Yemeni authorities in March of 2004 but again escaped Yemeni custody in February 2006 after he and several other inmates used broomsticks and pieces of a broken fan to dig an escape tunnel that led from the prison to a nearby mosque.

The State Department’s Rewards for Justice Program had previously offered a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to his arrest.

Abd al Rahim al-Nashiri, an al-Qaeda militant also seen as a key figure in the bombing, has been in US custody since 2002 and has been held at the detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba since 2006.

US military prosecutors have charged al-Nashiri with murder for allegedly planning the attack on the USS Cole.

Al-Badawi is also not the first high-profile al-Qaeda target that the US has killed in Yemen.

US officials told CNN in August that a 2017 CIA drone strike in Yemen killed Ibrahim al-Asiri, a master al-Qaeda bombmaker.

Al-Asiri, a native of Saudi Arabia, was the mastermind behind the “underwear bomb” attempt to detonate on a flight above the skies of Detroit on Christmas Day in 2009.

He was widely credited with perfecting miniaturized bombs with little or no metal content that could make it past some airport security screening. That ability made him a direct threat to the US, and some of his plots had come close to reaching their targets in the US.

The US has sought to prevent al-Qaeda from exploiting the chaos of Yemen’s civil war to establish a safe haven and the US military carried out 131 airstrikes in Yemen in 2017 and conducted 36 strikes in 2018, nearly all of them targeting al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, a terror group that both al-Asiri and Al-Badawi have been associated with.

The CIA has not revealed how many strikes it has carried out. CIA drone strikes are not publicly acknowledged.</s>WASHINGTON — An al-Qaida operative who was allegedly involved in the attack on the USS Cole 18 years ago, in which 17 sailors were killed including two from the Coastal Bend, was the target of a U.S. airstrike in Yemen on New Year's Day, according to the Associated Press.

A military spokesman said the Jan. 1 airstrike targeted Jamal al-Badawi, who was indicted by a federal grand jury in 2003 and charged with 50 counts of various terrorism offenses, including murder of U.S. nationals and murder of U.S. military personnel. He was wanted for his role in the attack on the USS Cole in Oct. 12, 2000.

RELATED: 17th anniversary of the USS Cole bombing that killed two Coastal Bend Sailors

22-year-old Ronchester M. Santiago of Kingsville, Texas, and 26-year-old Gary Swenchonis Jr. of Rockport, Texas, were both on the USS Cole on the day of the attack. The guided-missile destroyer was being refueled in a Yemen harbor when a small boat carrying two suicide bombers rode up and exploded.

Santiago and Swenchonis Jr. were among the 17 sailors killed that day. 39 others were wounded in the attack.

U.S. forces are working to confirm al-Badawi's death.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.</s>The terrorist behind the 2000 attack on the USS Cole is believed to have been killed in a US airstrike in Yemen on Tuesday, according to a US administration official.

Jamel Ahmed Mohammed Ali Al-Badawi was an al Qaeda operative who the US believes helped orchestrate the October 12, 2000, attack on the USS Cole that killed 17 American sailors.

The official said all intelligence indicators show al-Badawi was killed in a strike in Yemen as a result of a joint US military and intelligence operation.

US officials told CNN that the strike took place in Yemen’s Ma’rib Governorate.

While US Central Command, which oversees military operations in the region, later confirmed that al-Badawi was targeted in a strike, a spokesman said the US was still assessing the results.

“US forces conducted a precision strike Jan. 1st in the Marib governate, Yemen, targeting Jamal al-Badawi, a legacy al Qaeda operative in Yemen involved in the USS Cole bombing,” US Navy Capt. Bill Urban, a spokesman for Central Command, told CNN in a statement.

“US forces are still assessing the results of the strike following a deliberate process to confirm his death,” he added.

The administration official said that al-Badawi was struck while driving alone in a vehicle and that the US assessed there was not any collateral damage.

Al-Badawi was on the FBI’s list of most wanted terrorists.

The Cole was attacked by suicide bombers in a small boat laden with explosives while in port in Aden, Yemen, for refueling. The attack also wounded 39 sailors.

The bombing was attributed to al Qaeda and foreshadowed the attack on the US less than one year later on September 11, 2001.

“Al-Badawi was indicted by a federal grand jury in 2003, charged with 50 counts of various terrorism offenses, including murder of US nationals and murder of US military personnel,” Urban said.

Al-Badawi was arrested by Yemeni authorities in December of 2000 and held in connection with the Cole attack but he escaped from a prison in Yemen in April of 2003.

He was recaptured by Yemeni authorities in March of 2004 but again escaped Yemeni custody in February 2006 after he and several other inmates used broomsticks and pieces of a broken fan to dig an escape tunnel that led from the prison to a nearby mosque.

The State Department’s Rewards for Justice Program had previously offered a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to his arrest.

Abd al Rahim al-Nashiri, an al Qaeda militant also seen as a key figure in the bombing, has been in US custody since 2002 and has been held at the detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba since 2006.

US military prosecutors have charged al-Nashiri with murder for allegedly planning the attack on the USS Cole.

Al-Badawi is also not the first high profile al Qaeda target that the US has killed in Yemen.

US officials told CNN in August that a 2017 CIA drone strike in Yemen killed Ibrahim al-Asiri, a master al Qaeda bombmaker.

Al-Asiri, a native of Saudi Arabia, was the mastermind behind the “underwear bomb” attempt to detonate on a flight above the skies of Detroit on Christmas Day in 2009.

He was widely credited with perfecting miniaturized bombs with little or no metal content that could make it past some airport security screening. That ability made him a direct threat to the US, and some of his plots had come close to reaching their targets in the US.

The US has sought to prevent al Qaeda from exploiting the chaos of Yemen’s civil war to establish a safe haven and the US military carried out 131 airstrikes in Yemen in 2017 and conducted 36 strikes in 2018, nearly all of them targeting al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, a terror group that both al-Asiri and Al-Badawi have been associated with.

The CIA has not revealed how many strikes it has carried out. CIA drone strikes are not publicly acknowledged.</s>The terrorist behind the 2000 attack on the USS Cole was believed killed in an American airstrike in Yemen on New Year’s Day, the government said Friday.

The State Department had offered a $5 million reward for the capture of Jamel Ahmed Mohammed Ali Al-Badawi for helping organize the attack, which killed 17 American sailors on Oct. 12, 2000.

Although the government hadn’t officially confirmed his death Friday afternoon, administration officials said Al-Badawi, an al-Qaueda operative who was on the FBI’s Most Wanted Terrorist list, was alone in a vehicle in Yemen's Ma'rib Governorate during Tuesday's airstrike.

There didn’t appear to be any collateral damage, they said.

Suicide bombers pulled up to the Cole in a small boat packed with explosives when it stopped for refueling in Adlen Yemen – in a foreshadowing of the 9/11 attacks on the U.S. a year later.

Besides the deaths, 39 sailors were wounded.

Yemeni authorities arrested Al-Badawi for the Cole attack in December 2000, but he escaped in April 2003.

They caught him a year later – and two years after that he escaped again with several other prisoners after digging a tunnel to a nearby mosque using broomsticks and pieces of a broken fan.

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The United States Central Command announces that a U.S. airstrike in Ma'rib Governorate, Yemen, has killed Jamal Ahmad Mohammad Al Badawi, who is believed to have masterminded the 2000 USS Cole bombing that killed 17 American sailors.