Ayman al-Zawahiri, the elusive leader of al-Qaeda who played a key role in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and took over the transnational terrorist franchise following Osama bin Laden’s death in 2011, was killed in a U.S. drone strike Sunday morning in Kabul.
The operation, which was years in the making and launched by the CIA, marked the first U.S. attack in Afghanistan since American forces left a year ago and represents a key victory for the Biden Administration, which pledged to stay on top of terrorist threats inside the war-torn country after the chaotic withdrawal.
Zawahiri’s death brings to a close one of the CIA’s longest-standing manhunts since Sept. 11, and, until now, one of the agency’s most confounding targets. Over the years, Zawahiri became as synonymous with al-Qaeda as Bin Laden. According to administration officials, Zawahiri was still in charge of al-Qaeda, issuing commands up until his death.
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