In January 2009, a union of Al-Qaeda branches in Saudi Arabia and Yemen came together to form a new Islamic militant organization under the name Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). Initially led by Osama bin Laden's former private secretary Nasir al-Wuhayshi (CNN), AQAP represents one of multiple franchises linked to Al-Qaeda. Over the years, AQAP has become the most active subsidiary of the jihadist network (BBC). U.S. officials, who have suffered a handful of attempted aerial terrorist bombings in recent years, view AQAP as the most dangerous branch of al-Qaeda (Smith-Spark) in due to its notorious reputation for orchestrating multiple large-scale attacks. terrorist attacks around the world. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”?Get the original essayFor many years, AQAP was led by Nasir al-Wuhayshi, veteran extremist leader, founder and second-in-command of Al- Qaeda, aforementioned. , who was designated a Specially Designated Global Terrorist in 2010 by the US State Department due to his close affiliation with Al-Qaeda. By his late thirties, al-Wuhayshi had over twenty years of combat experience (Lister, Cruickshank). America had described its leadership role as being "responsible for approving targets, recruiting new members, allocating resources to training and planning attacks, and tasking others with carrying out attacks” (Ferran); but, despite being a cunning strategist, he was also an extremely charismatic man who "inspired fear and deep loyalty among al-Qaeda fighters in Yemen" (Lister, Cruickshank). Al-Wuhayshi was at the center of numerous AQAP threats and attacks until his death on June 12, 2015 by a US drone strike (CNN). Many observers believe that al-Wuhayshi's death constitutes the most significant blow to al-Qaeda in years (Lister, Cruickshank). Days after his death, AQAP released al-Wuhayshi's statement and named Qasim al-Raymo as his successor (BBC). Currently led by al-Raymo and based in Yemen, AQAP's status has become even more widely known. AQAP had previously targeted local residents of Yemen and Saudi Arabia, the United States and the Western occupiers of the Arabian Peninsula; but, more recently, it is pursuing a global strategy (NCTC). Many of their long-term goals are also consistent with the principles of other al-Qaeda branches: assassinating Western nationals and their allies (including members of the Saudi royal family), expelling Jews and crusaders from the Arabian Peninsula, -establish the Islamic caliphate, introduce Sharia law and liberate Muslim lands. They also aim to rid non-Muslims from Yemen and Saudi Arabia and overthrow the governments of these countries in order to eventually replace them with an Islamic state. Their tactics rely primarily on targeting foreigners and government forces in Yemen and Saudi leaders (Smith-Spark). AQAP is currently identified as Al Qaeda's most dangerous and ambitious international threat, waging a domestic insurgency while maintaining its focus on Western targets (CFR). . During his lifetime, al-Wuhayshi was considered one of Yemen's most wanted fugitives and Saudi Arabia and the United States offered him a ten million dollar reward for his capture or death. In order to obtain global recognition and media propaganda in favor of recruitment, AQPA was the first franchise.