Senior al Qaeda leader leaves Pakistan, directs Iraq operations from Syria

By Bill Roggio

A senior al Qaeda leader and ideologue who was based in Pakistan's tribal areas has taken control of al Qaeda in Iraq's organization in Syria and is operating from the capital, Damascus.

Sheikh Issa al Masri is thought to have entered Syria in June 2009 and has been consolidating control of the remnants of al Qaeda in Iraq to refocus the group's efforts to destabilize the Iraqi government.

Sheikh Issa was detained by Pakistani security forces in January 2009, according to the Asia Times. It is unclear if he escaped or was released from Pakistani custody, US military and intelligence officials told The Long War Journal.

After leaving Pakistani custody, Sheikh Issa traveled to Iran prior to entering Syria, according to a report in Corriere della Sera, an Italian newspaper. Al Qaeda has an extensive network inside Iran which receives support from the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, according to the US Treasury Department, which has sanctioned several members of al Qaeda's organization in Iran.

Sheikh Issa is believed to be based in Damascus and is protected by the Mukhabarat, Syria's secret intelligence service. From Damascus, Sheikh Issa has been instrumental in reorganizing al Qaeda in Iraq's network and is thought to be behind some of the most deadly attacks in Iraq, including Wednesday's coordinated bombings in Baghdad that killed more than 90 Iraqis and wounded more than 1,200. ....