Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri killed in CIA drone strike in Afghanistan

Al Qaeda leader Ayman alZawahiri was killed in a CIA drone strike in Afghanistan over the weekend US officials said on Monday the biggest blow to the militant group since its founder Osama bin Laden was killed in 2011 Zawahiri an Egyptian surgeon who had a 25 million bounty on his head helped coordinate the Sept 11 2001 attacks that killed nearly 3000 people One of the US officials speaking on the condition of anonymity said the CIA carried out a drone strike in the Afghan capital Kabul on SundayOver the weekend the United States conducted a counterterrorism operation against a significant al Qaeda target in Afghanistan a senior administration official said in a statement to reportersThe operation was successful and there were no civilian casualties the official added It was not immediately clear how the United States which does not have US troops on the ground confirmed that Zawahiri had been killed There were rumors of Zawahiris death several times in recent years and he was long reported to have been in poor health His death raises questions about whether Zawahiri received sanctuary from the Taliban following their takeover of Kabul in August 2021 The drone attack is the first known US strike inside Afghanistan since US troops and diplomats left the country in August 2021Also Read Sri Lankan Prez Wickremesinghe believes not right time for Rajapaksa to returnThe move may bolster the credibility of Washingtons assurances that the United States can still address threats from Afghanistan without a military presence in the country US President Joe Biden will deliver remarks on Monday at 730 pm 2330 GMT on what the White House described as a successful counterterrorism operationIn a statement Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid confirmed that a strike took place and strongly condemned it calling it a violation of international principlesZawahiris whereabouts variously rumored to be in Pakistans tribal area or inside Afghanistan had been unknown until the strike A video released in April in which he praised an Indian Muslim woman for defying a ban on wearing an Islamic head scarf dispelled rumors that he had died A loud explosion echoed through Kabul early Sunday morning A house was hit by a rocket in Sherpoor There were no casualties as the house was empty Abdul Nafi Takor spokesman of the interior ministry said earlierOne Taliban source requesting anonymity said there had been reports of at least one drone flying over Kabul that morning With other senior al Qaeda members Zawahiri is believed to have plotted the October 12 2000 attack on the USS Cole naval vessel in Yemen which killed 17 US sailors and injured more than 30 others the Rewards for Justice website said He was indicted in the United States for his role in the August 7 1998 bombings of the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania that killed 224 people and wounded more than 5000 othersBoth bin laden and Zawahiri eluded capture when USled forces toppled Afghanistanacirciquestiquests Taliban government in late 2001 following the Sept 11 attacks on the United States Bidenacirciquestiquests decision to kill Zawahiri is sure to be compared to the cautious stance he initially took in meetings that led to thenPresident Barack Obamaacirciquestiquests order for the Pakistan raid that killed bin Laden in 2011 Biden who was then vice president has acknowledged that he advised Obama to take more time But he also told him to follow your instincts and ultimately supported his decision to go ahead Obama in his memoirs wrote that Biden was concerned about the enormous consequences of failure and counseled the president to defer any decision until the intelligence community was more certain that bin Laden was in the compoundThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever