02/08/2022
The United States killed al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in a ""precision"" strike in the center of Kabul, the Afghanistan capital. Zawahiri, an Egyptian surgeon with a $25 million bounty on his head, helped coordinate Sept. 11, 2001, attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people.
U.S. officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said Zawahiri was killed when he came out on the balcony of his safe house in Kabul on Sunday morning and was hit by ""hellfire"" missiles from a U.S. drone.
Three spokespeople in the Taliban administration in Kabul declined to comment on Zawahiri's death. Zawahiri succeeded bin Laden as al Qaeda leader, but his lack of charisma and competition from rival militants of the Islamic State hobbled his ability to inspire devastating attacks on the West.
Source: Reuters