Story highlights Nasir al-Wuhayshi is believed to have died last week in Yemen's Hadramout region

He was the No. 2 leader of al Qaeda globally and the head of AQAP

"If it's true, it is a significant blow. Leadership matters," a U.S. senator says about the reports of al-Wuhayshi's death

(CNN) Top al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) leader Nasir al-Wuhayshi was killed Friday in a suspected U.S. drone strike in Yemen's Hadramout region, according to two Yemeni national security officials.

Tweets from known AQAP operatives also spoke of al-Wuhayshi having been martyred, and of AQAP military commander Qasm al-Rimi (also known as Abu Hureira al-Sanaani) having been appointed as al-Wuhayshi's replacement.

U.S. authorities are looking to confirm al-Wuhayshi's death, according to one U.S. intelligence official.

Al-Wuhayshi was the No. 2 leader of al Qaeda globally and the head of AQAP. In a video that surfaced in April last year, the man who was known as al Qaeda's crown prince appeared brazenly out in the open, greeting followers.

In a speech to the group, al-Wuhayshi makes it clear that he's going after the United States, saying: "We must eliminate the cross. ... The bearer of the cross is America!"

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