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Nasser al-Awlaki

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Nasser al-Awlaki
Born1946
Said, Shabwa Governorate, Yemen
Died28 September 2021(2021-09-28) (aged 74–75)[1]
CitizenshipYemeni
Occupation(s)Politician, scholar
Known forFormer agriculture minister of Yemen, former president of Sanaa University
ChildrenAnwar al-Awlaki
RelativesAbdulrahman al-Awlaki (grandson), Nawar al-Awlaki (granddaughter)

Nasser al-Awlaki (Arabic: ناصر العولقي; 1946 – 28 September 2021[1]) was a Yemeni scholar and politician. He was the father of Anwar and grandfather of Abdulrahman al-Awlaki, who were killed in separate U.S. drone strikes. Nasser's granddaughter Nawar al-Awlaki was also killed in a U.S. raid in Yemen in 2017, the Raid on Yakla.[2]

Biography

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He was a Fulbright Scholar and earned a master's degree in agricultural economics at New Mexico State University in 1971.[3] He received a doctorate at the University of Nebraska, and worked at the University of Minnesota from 1975 to 1977.[4][5] Nasser al-Awlaki served as Agriculture Minister of Yemen in Ali Abdullah Saleh's government. He was also President of Sana'a University.[6][7][8] Yemen's prime minister from 2007 to 2011, Ali Mohammed Mujur, was a relative.[9]

After the deaths of his son and grandson, Nasser published a six-minute audio message condemning the U.S. for the killings.[10] In the audio, he said of President Barack Obama:

I urge the American people to bring the killers to justice. I urge them to expose the hypocrisy of the 2009 Nobel Prize laureate. To some, he may be that. To me and my family, he is nothing more than a child killer.

— q.v. TIME, CNN[11][12]

Al-Awlaki claimed his son Anwar was far from any battlefield.[10] In 2010, al-Awlaki also said he believed Anwar had been wrongly accused and had not been a member of al-Qaeda.[13]

On 29 January 2017, Nawar al-Awlaki, Nasser's 8-year-old granddaughter, was the third member of his family to be killed by the U.S. The girl was among several civilians killed in the Yakla raid, the first covert operation ordered by President Donald Trump. Nasser said in response "This is the new (U.S.) administration – it's very sad, a big crime."[2][14]

Nasser al-Awlaki's son Anwar was a U.S. citizen, born in New Mexico in 1971 while Nasser was earning his master's degree.

Al-Awlaki died on 28 September 2021 after suffering from illness.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "وفاة رئيس جامعة صنعاء الأسبق" [The death of the former president of Sanaa University]. news.albousla.ps (in Arabic). 28 September 2021. Archived from the original on 28 September 2021. Retrieved 12 October 2021.
  2. ^ a b "Navy SEAL, 8-year-old American girl died in Yemen raid". NBC News. Retrieved 31 January 2017.
  3. ^ Warren Richey (31 August 2010). "Anwar al-Awlaki: ACLU wants militant cleric taken off US 'kill list'". The Christian Science Monitor. Archived from the original on 22 October 2010. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
  4. ^ Sharpe, Tom (14 November 2009). "Radical imam traces roots to New Mexico; Militant Islam cleric's father graduated from NMSU". The Santa Fe New Mexican. Archived from the original on 5 January 2013. Retrieved 1 December 2009.
  5. ^ Raghavan, Sudarsan (10 December 2009). "Cleric linked to Fort Hood attack grew more radicalized in Yemen". The Washington Post. Retrieved 10 December 2009.
  6. ^ Raghavan, Sudarsan (10 December 2009). "Cleric linked to Fort Hood attack grew more radicalized in Yemen". The Washington Post. Retrieved 10 December 2009.
  7. ^ Shane, Scott (18 November 2009). "Born in U.S., a Radical Cleric Inspires Terror". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 6 September 2011. Retrieved 20 November 2009.
  8. ^ Holmes, Oliver (5 November 2009). "Why Yemen Hasn't Arrested Terrorist Cleric Anwar al-Awlaki". Time. Archived from the original on 12 November 2010. Retrieved 11 November 2010.
  9. ^ Newton, Paula (2 February 2010). "Al-Awlaki's father asks Obama to end manhunt". CNN. Retrieved 2 February 2010.
  10. ^ a b "Nasser Al-Awlaki Blasts U.S. For Killing of Son and Grandson via @intelwire". News.intelwire.com. 2 December 2011. Retrieved 23 October 2012.
  11. ^ "An American Teenager in Yemen: Paying for the Sins of His Father?". Time. 27 October 2011. Archived from the original on 28 October 2011.
  12. ^ "Official: Drone attack kills Al-Awlaki's son in Yemen". CNN. 15 October 2011. Archived from the original on 20 December 2011. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
  13. ^ Newton, Paula (11 January 2010). "Al-Awlaki's father says son is 'not Osama bin Laden'". CNN. Retrieved 24 May 2013.
  14. ^ Ghobari, Mohammed; Stewart, Phil (29 January 2017). "Commando dies in U.S. raid in Yemen, first military op OK'd by Trump". Reuters. Retrieved 25 July 2023.
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