Libyan-born Atiyah Abd al-Rahman, second in command of Al Qaeda, has been killed in an apparent CIA drone strike in Pakistan.

Al-Rahman took over the number two position after Ayman al-Zawahiri, Osama Bin Laden’s longtime top deputy, took over the number one spot following Bin Laden’s death.

A U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to summarize the government’s intelligence on al-Rahman, said al-Rahman’s death will make it harder for Zawahiri to oversee what is considered an increasingly weakened organization.

“Zawahiri needed Atiyah’s experience and connections to help manage al-Qaida,” the official said.

Rahman has a long history with Al Qaeda. He served as operational chief until Bin Laden’s death and once served as the group’s “ambassador” to Iran. He was also a close confidant of Bin Laden.

Al-Rahman was allowed to move freely in and out of Iran as part of that arrangement and has been operating out of Waziristan for some time, officials have said.

This guy also brought experience to Al Qaeda, having fought infidels since his teens during the jihad against the Soviet Union. He was in his thirties at the time of his killing.