#6 Anwar Awlaki
The American-born Muslim cleric, accused of inspiring and plotting terrorist attacks on Americans, including the deadly shooting at an army base in Texas, was killed by a Hellfire missile fired from a drone aircraft operated by the CIA.
Although Awlaki was a midlevel figure in al-Qaeda, he cast a potent shadow in U.S. counterterrorism circles because he spoke fluent English and was effective at reaching disaffected Muslims in the United States and elsewhere via speeches and sermons on the Internet.
His death marked an escalation of Obama administration efforts to kill leaders of al-Qaeda and its affiliates and demonstrated that whether American-born or not, if you join the likes of al-Qaeda or ISIS – we will kill you.
