Top al-Qaida commander dies in Lebanese jail

BEIRUT: A Lebanese army general says the leader of an al-Qaida-linked group that has conducted attacks across the Middle East before shifting its focus to Syria´s civil war has died in custody in Lebanon.

The general says the detainee, Majid al-Majid, died on Saturday after suffering kidney failure. The general spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.

Al-Majid, a Saudi citizen was detained in Lebanon late last month and had been held at a secret location. He was the purported commander of the Abdullah Azzam Brigades and one of the 85 most-wanted individuals in his native Saudi Arabia.

The U.S. State Department designated the group a foreign terrorist organization in 2012, freezing any assets it holds in the United States and banning Americans from doing business with the group.