Abdelmalek Droukdel

Abdelmalek Droukdel
Abdelmalek Droukdel
عبد المالك دروكدال
First Emir of AQIM
	In office; 26 January 2007 – 3 June 2020
Preceded by	Position created
Succeeded by	Abu Ubaidah Youssef al-Annabi
Personal details
Born	20 April 1970; Meftah, Algeria
Died	3 June 2020 (aged 50); Talahandak, Mali
Education	Blida 1 University
Military service
Allegiance	Al-Qaeda
Branch/service	GIA (1993–1998); GSPC (1998–2007); AQIM (2007–2020)
Years of service	1993 – 2020
Rank	Emir
Battles/wars	Soviet–Afghan War; Algerian Civil War; Insurgency in the Maghreb Operation Juniper Shield Battle of Talahandak †; ; ;

Abdelmalek Droukdel (Arabic: عبد المالك دروكدال; 20 April 1970 – 3 June 2020),^[1] also known by his alias as Abu Musab Abdel Wadoud (Arabic: أبو مصعب عبد الودود), was the emir, or leader, of the Algerian Islamic militant group Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), formerly the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC). He was killed during a French special operation during the Battle of Talahandak.

Early life and education

Droukdel was born in Meftah, Algeria, on 20 April 1970.^[2] He earned a bachelor's degree in mathematics from the University of Blida before joining the insurgency in 1996.^[3]^[4]

Afghan War, Algerian Civil War and the GSPC1

Droukdel returned to Algeria after fighting in the Afghan civil war, and joined the GSPC.^[5] Droukdel was a regional leader of the GSPC for several years before becoming the group's commander in 2004 following the death of then-leader Nabil Sahraoui.^[6]^[7] His mentor was Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi.^[8] After the killing of al-Zarqawi in 2006, Droukdel published a statement in a website and stated "O infidels and apostates, your joy will be brief and you will cry for a long time... we are all Zarqawi."^[9] Droukdel is believed to have been responsible for introducing suicide bombing to Algeria.^[10]

Emir of AQIM

Under Droukdel's leadership the GSPC sought to develop itself from a largely domestic entity into a larger player on the international terror stage. As the new leader of the GSPC, Droukdel reorganized the group, and continued targeting civilians. He was, however, unable to quell the rumblings between factions. In September 2006, it was announced that the GSPC had joined forces with al-Qaeda and in January 2007, the group officially changed its name to the "Al-Qaeda Organization in the Islamic Maghreb."^[11] Droukdel played a significant role in this merger.^[5] However, the local leaders of the organization such as Droukdel began to pursue much more independent activities and were distanced from al-Qaeda in the last quarter of 2012.^[12]

Droukdel ousted Mokhtar Belmokhtar from the organization in late 2012 for Belmokhtar's "fractious behaviour".^[13] Journalists discovered a document attributed to Droukdel and dated 20 July 2012 in Timbuktu that criticized militants for implementing Islamic law too quickly in Mali.^[14] He believed the destruction of shrines would provoke Western governments to intervene in Mali.^[15]

Designation

In December 2007, the United States Department of the Treasury imposed financial sanctions and froze Abdelmalek Droukdel's assets under Executive Order 13224.^[16]^[17]

Death

The French government said on 5 June 2020 that Droukdel, and members of his inner circle, had been killed by French special forces during the Battle of Talahandak, north of Mali two days earlier.^[18] AQIM confirmed Droukdel's death two weeks later.^[19] He was replaced by Abu Ubaidah Youssef al-Annabi as the leader of AQIM.^[20]