US Government, today, confirmed that a drone strike operation in Afghanistan led to the death of Al-Qaeda Chief Ayman al-Zawahiri. “Justice has been delivered and this terrorist leader is no more,” President Joe Biden said in his address. Ayman al-Zawahiri was 71 years old at the time of his death.
Ayman al-Zawahiri was the key idealogue behind the global terror network of Al-Qaeda for several decades. At the time, the terrorist group was at its peak under the leadership of charismatic Osama bin Laden. The Egyptian eye doctor is believed to be the mastermind behind the group’s attacks on US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998. He also had a central role in the September 11, 2001, attack on the US that left almost 3,000 dead.
However, the group’s downfall came when a US raid killed bin Laden in 2011. Al-Qaeda never really regrouped after that or gained earlier momentum. Nevertheless, there has been news that even as Ayman al-Zawahiri was ageing, he was in talks with the Taliban to try and rebuild the group.
In a statement, the US government talked about its commitment to counter terrorist threats. It said, “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.”