Big Fish Watch: Al Qaeda Number 3; Osama's Brother In Law Killed?

If this can be confirmed, it's a real big fish. Al Qaeda's number 3 - and who happens to be Osama Bin Laden's brother in law, was allegedly killed in the Afghan-Pakistani border region.

Al-Qaida's number three — a co-founder of the terror network and Osama bin Laden's brother-in-law — has been killed in Pakistan's border area with Afghanistan, according to a statement attributed to the group that was posted on Islamist websites Monday.

The statement did not say how Shaykh Saeed, whose real name is Shaykh Mustafa Abu Al-Yazid, was killed nor did it identify a successor. Saeed was also al-Qaida's financial director.

One senior U.S. official speaking on condition of anonymity told NBC News that Saeed was killed in an attack by a missile-carrying drone aircraft.

Another official said that "in terms of counterterrorism this would be a big victory," describing Saeed as "the group's chief operating officer, with a hand in everything from finances to operational planning. He was also the organization's prime conduit to Osama Bin Laden and Ayman Al-Zawahiri. He was key to al-Qaida's command and control."

How he was killed? It would appear to be a UAV airstrike.