The tip-off which enabled two Hellfire missiles fired by US drones to locate and kill the US-born Anwar al-Awkali reached US intelligence as a result of a power struggle within Al Qaeda's leadership in Yemen. Killed too was a second US-born al Qaeda operative. debkafile's counter-terror sources disclose that the internal strife was sharpened by the recent arrival in Yemen of the new Al Qaeda leader Ayman Zuwahiri, who determined to purge AQAP ranks of its American element ahead of his next plans.

Osama bin Laden's shoes are likely to stay empty for some time. Al Qaeda is not structured for a large-scale terror attack as an organization to avenge his death. Some ten top-notch operatives listed here have the will or ability - or both - for a lone wolf operation.

The US is sustaining the momentum of the war on terror by sending more Special Forces and drones into Pakistan after Osama bin Laden's top lieutenant, Ayman al Zawahiri, Taliban leader Mullah Omer and al Qaeda's chief operations officer, Seif al Adal. debkafile: Washington suspects their whereabouts are known to Pakistan's Inter-Services-Intelligence agency (ISI) and has given Islamabad an ultimatum: Cooperate in their capture or US troops will take up the pursuit in your country.

To curry favor with Egypt, Iran has offered to hand over 13 long wanted Egyptian Islamic Jihad terrorists in return for Cairo's support for installing Shiite Nuri al-Maliki as Iraqi prime minister and helping to find a way out of the impasse over the Hizballah's indictment for the Hariri assassination. This is revealed exclusively by debkafile's counter-terror sources. Islamic Jihad's leader is Ayman al Zuwahiri, Osama bin Laden's lieutenant and of late his rival. The deal would be a severe blow to al Qaeda.