"Justice has been delivered," President Joe Biden said from the White House yesterday, announcing that the U.S. had "successfully conducted an airstrike in Kabul, Afghanistan that killed the amir of Al Qaeda, Ayman Al-Zawahiri." The 71-year-old Al-Zawahiri helped plan the 9/11 attacks and took over Al Qaeda after Osama bin Laden's death. Al-Zawahiri's death could even make things worse, depending on who succeeds him as the head of Al Qaeda or how the group reacts to his death. Al-Zawahiri was reportedly not a terribly charismatic leader, leaving the possibility that a successor who is could do much more damage, especially if they're able to unite various Al Qaeda factions and splinter groups around the world. But "according to three people with knowledge of the decision," FTC staff recommended against doing so, reports Bloomberg.

Source: Washington Post August 02, 2022 14:17 UTC