US-born Islamic cleric Anwar al-Awlaqi, an Al-Qaeda leader suspected of involvement in attacks on the United States, was killed in an air strike in Yemen on Friday in what President Barack Obama hailed as a "major blow" to the terror group.

In Sanaa, the defence ministry said without elaborating that Awlaqi was killed on Friday morning, but one man wounded in the attack was quoted as saying a total of seven people were killed in the strike in Marib province, a hotbed of Al-Qaeda activity.

The ministry, which announced the deaths, said that among those killed was Pakistani-American Samir Khan. US monitoring service SITE Intelligence Group says he was a contributor to Al-Qaeda's English-language magazine "Inspire."

Speaking in Washington, Obama said "the death of Awlaqi is a major blow to Al-Qaeda's most active operational affiliate. (It) marks another significant milestone in the broader effort to defeat Al-Qaeda and its affiliates."

Obama said that while the organisation was weakened, it was still dangerous, and the United States would remain vigilant.

Tribal sources told AFP Awlaqi was killed in what was likely to have been an American air strike on two vehicles in Marib.

In April 2010, a US official said the Obama administration had authorised the targeted killing of Awlaqi after intelligence agencies concluded the cleric was directly involved in anti-US plots.

One of the tribal sources quoted Khamis Saleh Arfaj as saying he was hosting the group at his house when the attack occurred.

He said they were seated on the ground outside eating a meal when a first strike hit.

The men rushed to their vehicles to flee, and the lead vehicle, with Awlaqi aboard, was destroyed in a second strike.

Arfaj, who was following in a second vehicle and was lightly wounded, said they "were killed instantly from a direct missile hit to their pick-up" truck.

He said his brother, Salem, was in the same vehicle with Awlaqi and also died.

In addition to Awlaqi and Salem Arfaj, he said the others killed were Samir Khan, two unnamed Saudis and a local tribesman, and a man named Mohammed Mosen al-Naaj.

The tribal source said he suspected they died in an American drone strike, saying: "US planes have been flying overhead for days now."

"Then this morning, at about 9:30, what appeared to be a US aircraft fired on the two cars Awlaqi and his fellow operatives are believed to have been travelling in," he said.

Earlier this month, The Washington Post said the United States was building an array of secret new drone bases to conduct strikes against Al-Qaeda targets in both Yemen and Somalia.

Yemeni authorities officially deny the use of drones against Al-Qaeda targets in their country, saying Washington provides only logistical support to Sanaa's fight against extremists.

In Washington, there was no confirmation from officials that the strike was carried out by US forces.

"The death of Awlaqi is a major blow to Al-Qaeda's most active operational affiliate. (It) marks another significant milestone in the broader effort to defeat Al-Qaeda and its affiliates," Obama said.

Obama said Awlaqi was the leader of external operations of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and had taken the lead in planning and directing efforts to murder innocent Americans.

The president said Awlaqi's killing was a tribute to the US intelligence community and to Yemen's cooperation with the United States in a common anti-terror campaign.

He also warned that though "weakened," AQAP was still "dangerous."

"Going forward, we will remain vigilant against any threats to the United States or our allies and partners," said Obama.

"But make no mistake, this is further proof that Al-Qaeda and its affiliates will find no safe haven anywhere in the world.

"Working with Yemen and our other allies and partners, we will be determined, we will be deliberate, we will be relentless, we will be resolute in our commitment to destroy terrorist networks that aim to kill Americans."

US Republican Representative Peter King, chairman of the House Committee on Homeland Security, called Awlaqi's killing "a great success in our fight against Al-Qaeda and its affiliates."

"For the past several years, Al-Awlaqi has been more dangerous even than Osama bin Laden had been. The killing of al-Awlaqi is a tremendous tribute to President Obama and the men and women of our intelligence community," he said.

Al-Qaeda leader Bin Laden was killed when US special forces raided his compound in Pakistan on May 2.

House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Rogers, also a Republican, said the killing "is another great step forward in breaking the back of Al-Qaeda."

"Awlaqi's deep understanding of American culture made him a very dangerous inspirational leader," said Rogers, who charged he "continued to inspire others to terror and actively planned and sought ways to kill Americans and attack our homeland."

The top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, Adam Smith, said Awlaqi "will no longer be able to propagate hatred and manipulate impressionable youth to take up arms against the United States and our allies."

Awlaqi was a US-Yemeni citizen born in New Mexico and who had eluded capture for years.

A charismatic preacher and fluent in English, he was seen as having the unique ability to recruit Al-Qaeda operatives in the West.

US intelligence officials believe he was linked to a US army major charged with shooting dead 13 people in Fort Hood, Texas, and to a Nigerian student accused of trying to blow up a US airliner on December 25, 2009.

The top Republican on the Senate Homeland Security Committee, Susan Collins, said those incidents, along with a botched Times Square bomb plot, "all bore his fingerprints."

"As the English-speaking leader of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, the radical cleric al-Awlaqi inspired and encouraged numerous terrorist plots against our country, using his knowledge of America as a means to harm us," she said.

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