U.S. Announces Arrest of Top Al-Qaida Leader

The U.S. command announced the arrest of an Al-Qaida leader it said served as the link between the organization's command in Iraq and Osama bin Laden's inner circle, enabling it to wield considerable influence over the Iraq group. Khaled Abdul-Fattah Dawoud Mahmoud al-Mashhadani was the highest ranking Iraqi in the Al-Qaida in Iraq leadership when he was captured Jul 4 in Mosul, according to a U.S. spokesman.