Wednesday, 19 December, 2001, 00:23 GMT
Al-Qaeda's new military
chief
Saif al-Adel is on the FBI's "most wanted" list
Saif al-Adel, a high-ranking member of the al-Qaeda network, is believed to have taken over as military commander of the organisation following the reported death of Muhammed Atef.
A former colonel in the Egyptian army special forces, Adel is on the FBI's "most wanted terrorists" list, with a reward of up to $25m for information leading directly to his capture.
The United States accuses him of helping to mastermind the 1998 bombings of US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, which killed 224 people and wounded thousands.
He is also suspected of teaching militants to use explosives, and training some of the 11 September hijackers.
In 1987, Egypt accused Adel - whose real name is Muhamad Ibrahim Makkawi - of trying to establish a military wing of the militant Islamic group al-Jihad, and of trying to overthrow the government.
But Cairo failed to prove its case against Adel, who fled the country in 1988.
Little personal information about Adel is available, but he is believed to be associated with Egyptian Islamic Jihad, the group that assassinated President Anwar Sadat in 1981 as retribution for making peace with Israel.
Media role
Adel, born in either 1960 or 1963, is believed to have been head of al-Qaeda's media committee.
He is thought to have arranged the filming of videos by Osama Bin Laden that have been broadcast internationally.
The US accuses him of training the Somali fighters who killed 18 US servicemen in Mogadishu in 1993.
They have been seeking him since that incident.
Atef, who is thought to have been killed in US bombing near Kabul in mid-November, was also suspected of involvement in the embassy bombings and Mogadishu fighting.
Dr Mustafa Alani, an expert on Islamic
extremism at Britain's Royal United Services
Institute, told BBC News Online that he
considers Mr Adel "not as capable" as Atef, the
man he replaced.
-- Anonymous, December 19, 2001