Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula has issued a video message saying its number two, Said al-Shehri, has been killed in a US drone strike in Yemen. 

In a video message another senior official offered condolences and congratulated followers on Shehri's martyrdom.

The Saudi native has been reported killed several times before, most recently in January when Yemeni authorities claimed he had died from injuries sustained in an operation by their security forces.

US officials describe Shehri as one of the most important al Qaeda-linked militants released from Guantanamo, where he was detained in January 2002 after Pakistan handed him over.

Freed in 2007, he went on to become second-in-command of what Washington considers to be one of al Qaeda's most dangerous branches.

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