Unidentified gunmen in Madagascar have reportedly killed a brother-in-law of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden.
The brother of Jamal Khalifa says Khalifa was killed Tuesday when 20 to 30 gunmen broke into his house, killed him and stole all of his belongings.
The brother, speaking from Saudi Arabia, said Khalifa mined and traded gems in Madagascar.
There was no independent confirmation of the report.
Khalifa was married to bin Laden's sister. The Philippine government was seeking Jamal Khalifa for allegedly financing Abu Sayyaf, an militant Islamist group, through a charity organization in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Khalifa denied the allegations in a recent e-mail to a Philippine newspaper, The Daily Inquirer. The paper quoted him as saying, "I have never given any money to any person or group, and certainly not to the Abu Sayyaf."
Several years ago, the U.S. government also labeled Jamal Khalifa a terrorist. However, his brother, Malek, insisted that Khalifa had no links to bin Laden apart from the family ties.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
