Why the capture of al Qaeda's Abu Anas al-Libi is a big deal

U.S. troops, the FBI, and CIA captured one of America's most-wanted terrorist suspects in Libya this weekend

Abdullah al Ragye
(Image credit: REUTERS)

U.S. forces conducted two high-profile raids against Islamist militants in Africa on Saturday. In the first, Navy SEALs slipped ashore before dawn near a villa in Barawe, Somalia, to capture a senior operative of al Shabab, the group behind the deadly terrorist attack at an upscale mall in Nairobi last month. Greeted with sustained gunfire, the SEALs reportedly left unharmed but without their quarry, a Kenyan of Somali origin called Ikrimah.

The U.S. forces had more luck in Libya.

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.