Taliban on edge after US kills al-Qaeda chief in upscale Kabul neighborhood
The US and the Taliban traded accusations of violating a key 2020 accord after Al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri was killed by a US drone attack in a part of the Afghan capital long known for its ostentatious villas.
It was long widely assumed that al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, if still alive, had little influence left in the competitive sphere of global jihadist enterprises.
The announcement of his death on July 30 may thus be less significant than the location: a balcony in a Kabul neighborhood known for its luxurious homes, where he and members of his family had been living for months.
A US Hellfire missile mounted on a drone seems to have been the weapon used, while the US Central Intelligence Agency likely led the operation. The Aug. 1 National Security Council briefing transcript noted only, “As with all similar operations, various parts of the counterterrorism community collaborated closely to plan and execute this complex operation."
The Egyptian Zawahiri had led al-Qaeda since former leader Osama bin Laden was killed by a US Navy SEAL operation in 2011 across the border in Pakistan. Al-Qaeda has been diminished in recent years compared with its offshoot and rival the Islamic State (IS), but maintains branches in multiple countries.
