File photo of Osama bin Laden and al-Zawahiri
Washington/Kabul: The United States killed al-Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri, in a drone strike, at the Sherpur locality in central Kabul in the early morning of Sunday, July 31, 2022. The villa where al-Zawahiri was hiding was believed to be “empty” by the local residents of this plush society of Taliban warlords and officials, often referred to by the locals as “chorpur’ (a colony of thieves).
Locals had seen Arabs in the colony in recent months. Apparently al Zawahiri – a wanted terrorist – was enjoying the hospitality of the Taliban rulers of Afghanistan.
The US today accused the Taliban of “grossly” violating the Doha Agreement by hosting and sheltering the leader of al Qa’ida in Kabul. US Secretary of State Antony J Blinken said the Taliban had given repeated assurances to the world that they would not allow Afghan territory to be used by terrorists to threaten the security of other countries. “In the face of the Taliban’s unwillingness or inability to abide by their commitments, we will continue to support the Afghan people with robust humanitarian assistance and to advocate for the protection of their human rights, especially of women and girls,” he stated and added that in fact the Taliban also betrayed the Afghan people and their own stated desire for recognition from and normalization with the international community.
US President Joe Biden last year committed to the American people that, following the withdrawal of U.S. forces, the United States would continue to act against terrorist threats emanating from Afghanistan. The President made clear that the US would not hesitate to protect the Homeland.
“With the operation that delivered justice to Ayman al-Zawahiri, the leader of al Qa’ida, we have made good on that commitment and we will continue to do so in the face of any future threats,” Blinken said. He added: “We were able to do so in this instance — and will be positioned to do so going forward — as a result of the skill and professionalism of our intelligence and counterterrorism community colleagues, for whom the President and I are deeply grateful.”
Earlier, President Biden, in an address to the nation on August 1, 2022 (local time), broke the news of the American airstrike in Kabul that killed al-Zawahiri.
“You know, al-Zawahiri was [Osama] bin Laden’s leader. He was with him all the — the whole time. He was his number-two man, his deputy at the time of the terrorist attack of 9/11 [/2001, in the US]. He was deeply involved in the planning of 9/11, one of the most responsible for the attacks that murdered 2,977 people on American soil,” Biden recalled. He pointed out that for decades, the al-Qaeda chief was a mastermind behind attacks against Americans, including the bombing of the USS Cole in 2000, which killed 17 American sailors and wounded dozens more. Besides al-Zawahiri also played a key role in the bombing of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, killing 224 and wounding over 4,500 others.
“He carved a trail of murder and violence against American citizens, American service members, American diplomats, and American interests. And since the United States delivered justice to bin Laden 11 years ago, al-Zawahiri has been a leader of al Qaeda — the leader. From hiding, he coordinated al Qaeda’s branches and all around the world — including setting priorities, for providing operational guidance that called for and inspired attacks against U.S. targets,” Biden said.
“He made videos, including in recent weeks, calling for his followers to attack the United States and our allies. Now justice has been delivered, and this terrorist leader is no more,” the US President said.
Offering details of the operation, Biden said after relentlessly seeking Zawahiri for years under Presidents George W Bush, Barrack Obama, and Donald Trump, the US intelligence community located the terrorist earlier this year. He had moved to downtown Kabul to reunite with members of his immediate family.
“After carefully considering the clear and convincing evidence of his location, I authorized a precision strike that would remove him from the battlefield once and for all. This mission was carefully planned and rigorously minimized the risk of harm to other civilians. And one week ago, after being advised that the conditions were optimal, I gave the final approval to go get him, and the mission was a success. None of his family members was hurt, and there were no civilian casualties,” Biden said.
al-Zawahiri’s death follows the elimination of the ISIS emir by the US forces in Syria in February.
Top photo: File photo of Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri
– global bihari bureau
