Egyptian-born Abu Obaidah al-Masri was believed to be the leader responsible for Al Qaeda's military efforts in the wartorn nation of Afghanistan. He has also been identified by Pakistani intelligence as the mastermind behind a failed plot to set bombs on trans-Atlantic flights departing from the United Kingdom.

The CIA initially believed that al-Masri had been killed in a missile attack in January, 2008. In April of 2008, the BBC reported that, according to U.S. intelligence sources, al-Masri had recently died (possibly from hepatitis). He was thought to have been hiding somewhere along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border.