U.S. killed al Qaeda's Wuhayshi, U.S. officials say

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States killed deputy leader of al Qaeda, Nasser al-Wuhayshi, in a strike in Yemen, U.S. officials told Reuters on Tuesday. Two of the officials said the White House would make an announcement on Wuhayshi shortly. Wuhayshi, a close associate of Osama bin Laden in the years before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States, was once seen as a successor to al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri. He also was leader of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, widely seen as the militant network's strongest branch. (Reporting By Mark Hosenball, Arshad Mohammed and Lesley Wroughton; Editing by Bill Trott)