Al-Zawahiri named Osama successor

Al-Qaeda appoints Ayman al-Zawahiri as new leader of terrorist outfit

Al-Zawahiri named Osama successor

Al-Qaeda appoints Ayman al-Zawahiri as new leader of terrorist outfit

Egyptian-born doctor Ayman al-Zawahiri (59) was heavily involved in developing the network's tactic of carrying out terrorist spectaculars on the West like 9/11 and 7/7.

Mentor and protege: Osama bin Laden sits with his adviser Ayman al-
Zawahiri during an interview with Pakistani journalist Hamid Mir at an
undisclosed location in Afghanistan. The article was published in November
2001. file pic/getty images

His promotion signals the terror group's intention to continue its campaign of violent attacks, say analysts.

Terrorism expert Professor Paul Wilkinson said, "The threat continues under different management, but still with the same ideology and objectives. That means that the international community has to maintain its vigilance, keep its counter-terrorism capabilities and improve its international co-operation."

He added that people in the West would be "foolish" to think that the threat posed by al-Qaeda had reduced because of bin Laden's death and the popular uprisings of the Arab Spring.

Al-Zawahiri cut his teeth as a jihadist organising militant activities against the Egyptian government.

He was jailed for three years on charges linked to the 1981 assassination of President Anwar Sadat during a military parade in Cairo.

After his release in 1984, he travelled to Afghanistan to fight the Soviets and became bin Laden's right-hand man in al-Qaeda. He is now thought to be living near the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Bin Laden was shot dead at his compound in Pakistan by an American Special Forces team early last month.

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