U.S. Drone Strike Kills Al Qaeda Leader Ayman AlZawahiri In Afghanistan
WASHINGTON - President Joe Biden announced Monday night that al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, one of the masterminds of the 9/11 attacks, was killed in a US counterterrorism operation in Afghanistan over the weekend.
"Justice has been served. And this terrorist leader is gone," Biden said in a rare afternoon speech from the White House. "No matter how long, no matter where he hides, if he poses a threat to our people, the United States. of America... I will find you."
Two people briefed on the matter told NBC News that al-Zawahiri was killed by a CIA drone.
Al-Zawahiri was Osama bin Laden's second-in-command during the 9/11 attacks and took over as al-Qaeda leader after US forces killed bin Laden in Pakistan in 2011. In this role, al-Zawahiri called for attacks on the United States and its allies.
In 2001, al-Zawahiri was on the run from US forces when they invaded Afghanistan and toppled the previous Taliban government, which had refused to topple bin Laden after the 9/11 attacks. Az-Zawahiri's whereabouts were unknown for a long time.
But US intelligence identified al-Zawahiri earlier this year, according to a senior administration official who briefed reporters on Monday's attack.
US intelligence officials determined that al-Zawahiri had moved from Pakistan to a Taliban-backed safe house in central Kabul. Az-Zawahiri's wife and children were transferred there first, authorities said. When American intelligence agents followed them, they learned that al-Zawahiri had joined his family.
Once al-Zawahiri arrived at the safe house, he never left, authorities said.
Authorities spent months identifying his "lifestyle," according to his daily habits to avoid civilian casualties, a senior government official said.
Intelligence officials built a model of al-Zawahiri's safe house and used it to brief Biden on the risks to civilians, the senior administration official added. They try to minimize the risk to civilians without compromising the integrity of the structure during a planned attack.
When asked if Biden would suffer even a few civilian casualties, an administration official said there was no reason to expect that. The attack was so precise that Zawahiri was killed on the balcony without injuring family members in the rest of the house, the official said.
Biden was shown the model safe house during a July 1 situation room meeting that included CIA Director William Burns, Director of National Intelligence Avril Haynes and National Counterterrorism Center Director Christine Abizaid.
The president wants to know what building materials make a house safe, as well as possible conditions such as weather and lighting during a strike.
He pressed officials about why al-Zawahiri had so much faith in the safe house.
Meanwhile, government lawyers created the legal framework for the operation. Al-Zawahiri is considered a legitimate target because of his continued leadership of al-Qaeda.
Asked on NBC's "Today" show Tuesday whether al-Zawahiri was planning attacks against American interests, White House national security adviser Jack Sullivan said: "We believe he plays an active role in the strategic management of al-Qaeda and the United States. everywhere. and still pose a serious threat to Americans.
On July 25, Biden again convened the relevant cabinet officials and aides. The largest group of national security officers in this emergency room informed him about the possible operation.
The president wants to learn more about the design of the safe house, officials say, and how an attack on al-Zawahiri in Afghanistan could affect U.S. relations with the Taliban. In particular, Biden pressed them on how the attacks at home could affect his administration's efforts to resettle Afghans who helped the United States during the war in Afghanistan.
After the meeting, Biden approved the airstrikes.
The president's entire national security service recommended that he authorize the strike.
His signature allowed intelligence officials to pull out al-Zawahiri when they determined the time was right.
Al-Zawahiri was killed in a drone strike on Saturday, July 30, or shortly before 10:00 p.m. Friday in Washington at 6:18 a.m. local time.
Two Hellfire missiles were fired while al-Zawahiri was on the balcony of a safe house, the official said, adding that no civilians or al-Zawahiri's family members were killed in the attack. The Haqqani Taliban expelled the family after the attack, the official said.
In a speech Monday night, Biden called al-Zawahiri the "mastermind" of the 9/11 attacks and said the terrorist leader also played a key role in the 1998 bombings of the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.
"He left a trail of murder and violence against American citizens, American military personnel, American diplomats and American interests," Biden said.
The Associated Press first reported that al-Zawahiri was killed in the attack.
Al-Zawahiri's death comes nearly a year after the US pulled out of Afghanistan following the 9/11 terrorist attacks, ending nearly 20 years of war in the country.
The Taliban quickly toppled the Western-backed government, and Biden was widely criticized by lawmakers on both sides of the aisle as well as foreign allies for his handling of the withdrawal, which left 13 American troops and hundreds of civilians dead. State control.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky. Monday's statement said that while Biden "deserves credit for authorizing this attack," it also said that "Afghanistan has once again become a hotbed of terrorist activity following the U.S. decision to withdraw."
The Taliban were not warned before the attack on al-Zawahiri, a spokesman for the Biden administration said on Monday, adding that the presence of the al-Qaeda leader in the country was a violation of the Doha agreement that signed by the US and the Taliban. in 2020.
Contributed by Joe Richards.
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