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Business News/ News / World/  After Mullah Omar’s death, who are the most dreaded global terrorists still at large?
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After Mullah Omar’s death, who are the most dreaded global terrorists still at large?

Here's a list of the world's most wanted terrorists or criminals

A file photo of Mulla Omar released by the FBI. Photo: APPremium
A file photo of Mulla Omar released by the FBI. Photo: AP

Mullah Mohammad Omar, the spiritual leader of the Afghan Taliban is dead, according to the Afghan government and officials of the country’s state intelligence.

On Wednesday, reports of Omar’s death surfaced with the Afghanistan’s National Directorate of Security (NDS) spokesman saying Omar died at a hospital in Karachi, Pakistan in April 2013.

Speaking to news agency The Associated Press, Sediqi said, “We confirm officially that he is dead." He added that Omar was “very sick in a Karachi hospital and died suspiciously there." Other reports said that Omar was suffering from tuberculosis.

Omar’s death, if true, presents a body blow to the armed insurgency group, the Taliban, who have been recently involved in peace talks with the Afghan government headed by President Ashraf Ghani.

The US’ National Counter Terrorism Center had earlier announced a bounty of up to $10 million for Omar’s whereabouts. Omar, who led the Taliban, has been accused of sheltering dreaded al-Qaeda terrorists like Osama Bin Laden and his reported #2, Ayman al-Zawahiri.

With Omar reportedly dead, here’s a list of some of the most wanted terrorists or criminals who are still alive (or in most cases, at large)

Ayman al-Zawahiri

After bin Laden’s death in May 2011, Zawahiri has emerged as the de facto leader of the terrorist networ, Al-Qaeda. Zawahiri, an Egyptian national, was a former surgeon, who worked with the Red Cresent during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Known for his videotape messages, Zawahiri is among the most wanted terrorists in the world, with the US State Department offering a bounty of $25million for any information leading to Zawahiri’s eventual capture. Zawahiri was last seen in 2014. But reports also linked him to the Charlie Hebdo attacks in Paris earlier this year.

Abubakar Shekau

The leader of the Nigerian terror outfit, Boko Haram, Shekau succeeded its founder Mohammed Yusuf in 2009, following the latter’s death. The same year, he survived an attempt on his life by Nigerian security forces, following which the group launched intensified its terror activities, in Nigeria’s restive Borno state. He was declared a designated terrorist by the US State Department in 2012, following which a reward of $7 million for information on his whereabouts was announced. Earlier this year, the Boko Haram announced its allegiance to the so-called Islamic State, led by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, its self-declared caliph.

Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi

The self-declared caliph of the Islamic State, Baghdadi rose to prominence after the US invasion of Iraq in 2003. He was arrested by US forces in 2004, and was subsequently released as a “low level prisoner". Upon release, Baghdadi joined the Mujahideen Shura Council, which later became the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI), the al-Qaeda’s Iraqi franchise. The group has been responsible for terror activities in Iraq, including sectarian attacks against the Shias, and multiple acts of suicide bombings. The group later expanded to Syria in 2013, and cut ties with the Al-Qaeda. In June last year, the ISIS announced the formation of a “caliphate", with Baghdadi as its caliph. In March 2015, reports emerged that Baghdadi was severely wounded in a coalition air strike. Baghdadi is a “Specially Designated Global Terrorist" as announced by the US State Department in October 2011. He carries a bounty of $10 million.

El Chapo

Joaquín Archivaldo Guzmán Loera or simply El-Chapo is the head of the dreaded Sinaloa drug cartel, which operates out of Mexico. A powerful drug lord, El Chapo’s notoriety has been likened to that of Pablo Escobar, the man who led the Medellin Cartel in the 1980s. Guzman was first arrested in 1993, before he escaped eight years later in 2001. After his audacious escape, Guzman was heavily involved in the Mexican drug wars. He was rearrested in February 2014 in a manhunt operation by the Mexican Navy and was transferred to the Almoloya de Juarez maximum security prison in Mexico. Earlier this month, Guzman pulled off a second escape through a tunnel inside the maximum security prison. He has since been at large.

Dawood Ibrahim

Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar, the son of a former Mumbai Police constable, is India’s most wanted man, following his involvement in masterminding the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts. Ibrahim, born in Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra, is believed to be living in Karachi and Dubai, largely thanks to the ISI, Pakistan’s intelligence agency. Ibrahim in 2003 was designated as a “global terrorist" by the United States’ State Department. Besides Ibrahim, other members of his gang, including Tiger Memon and Chhota Shakeel are also on India’s most wanted list.

Hafiz Saeed

Hafiz Muhammad Saeed is the leader of Jaamat-ud-Dawa (JuD), a banned terrorist group in Pakistan. The organization has close links with the ISI through the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), another outfit which primarily carries out anti-India terrorist activities in Kashmir and other parts of India. The JuD, a front organization for the LeT, was sanctioned by the United Nations for its terror-related activities. Saeed rose to notoriety following the 2006 train bombings in Mumbai and the 26/11 Mumbai attacks in November 2008. Saeed, who has been placed under house arrest on multiple occasions, has a $10 million bounty on him, offered by the US State Department.

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Published: 30 Jul 2015, 09:12 PM IST
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