The head of Al Qaeda, Ayman al-Zawahiri, was killed on Saturday in Kabul, Afghanistan following US drone strikes.
Joe Biden said the
following in a media briefing yesterday.
“On Saturday, at my
direction, the United States successfully concluded an air strike in Kabul,
Afghanistan and killed al Qaeda Amir Ayman al-Zawahiri.”
“He carved a trail of
murder and violence against American citizens, American service members,
American diplomats, and American interests. Zawahri was Bin Laden’s leader, his
number two man, and his deputy during the time of terrorist attacks on 9/11. He
was deeply involved in the planning of 9/11”
Biden added that Al-Zawahiri
had also masterminded other acts of violence, including the suicide bombing of
the USS Cole naval destroyer in Aden in October 2000 which killed 17 US
sailors, and the 1998 attacks on the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, in
which 223 people died.
Al-Zawahiri took over Al-Qaeda after Osama Bin Laden was killed in US military operation in Pakistan back in 2011. Zawahiri is also one of the US's "most wanted terrorists".
Taliban spokesman
Zabiullah Mujahid also
confirmed the strike
“An airstrike was
carried out on a residential house in Sherpur area of Kabul city on July 31.”
Mujahid said the
Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan “strongly condemns this attack on any pretext
and calls it a clear violation of international principles and the Doha
Agreement.”
Mujahid also issued a
warning that "such actions are a repetition of the failed experiences of
the past 20 years and are against the interests of the United States of
America, Afghanistan, and the region. Repeating such actions will damage the
available opportunities.”
The mainstream media
desperately looking for a way to cover Biden favorably, may have reason to
celebrate especially with the mid-terms inching closer.
First some facts
about the US-Afghan conflict.
The U.S. spent
almost $5.8 trillion on the war and rebuilding of
Afghanistan.
The US had troops on
the ground and even an administrative presence for nearly two decades.
The Brown
University Costs of War project that tracks casualties of war reported
the following regarding the Afghan conflict,
· 47,245 Afghan civilians while 66,000 Afghan national military and
police personnel were killed.
· 2,448.US service members and 3,846 defense contractors were killed
in Afghanistan.
· 1,144 allied service members, including from other NATO member
states were also killed.
· 444 Aid workers and 72 Journalists were also killed.
One of the primary
goals of the US presence in Afghanistan was to prevent it from becoming a safe
haven and training ground for Islamic terrorists.
The New York Times reported that the locality where the missiles struck Al- Zawahri is a wealthy downtown enclave within what is considered the city’s diplomatic quarters, which once housed dozens of Western embassies and now is home to some high-ranking Taliban officials.
This clearly proves
that Afghanistan has once again become the headquarters for Islamic terrorists.
The NYT also reported
that “after the US drone strike that killed al-Zawahri, members of the terror
group Haqqani network had tried to conceal that the al-Qaeda leader was at the
house in Kabul, which reportedly was owned by a top aide to Sirajuddin Haqqani,
and restricted access to the site.”
Sirajuddin Haqqani is the interior minister in the Taliban ‘government’ in Kabul. Clearly, the Taliban is actively supporting terror groups.
There are also
serious questions that need to be asked about Pakistan, the terror state where
Osama Bin Laden made his home.
The
Times of India quotes a US report that Al-Zawahiri was long believed
to have been living in Pakistan.
The report also
stated that the fact that Al-Zawahiri was killed in Kabul is a testament to not
only the porous border between Pakistan and Afghanistan but also to al Qaida's
decades-long use of facilities, houses, buildings, and compounds throughout
both countries.
Under President Trump, Afghanistan had seen some progress, despite the Afghan government’s considerable inadequacies and corruption. It was relatively peaceful and there was some economic growth. Women were relatively safe and could go to work. Schools and Universities were functioning with even girl students in attendance. The US government spent less than before and there were no US soldier causalities for over a year.
Biden's surreptitious,
ill-planned and abrupt withdrawal has undone all progress and Afghanistan is
back to being a safe abode for terrorists.
What is more troubling is the Biden administration left behind billions of dollars worth of U.S. advanced weaponry such as Black Hawks and Humvees. These arms are obviously in the custody of the worst and most dangerous terrorists in the world who have made Afghanistan their home.
If that wasn’t enough, the US and other global powers have been dispatching advanced weaponry to Ukraine. There is no tracking mechanism for these arms. It isn’t beyond the realm of possibility that the weapons may find their way to Afghanistan.
The killing of Al-Zawahiri could be regarded as a symbolic victory but it will have very little impact on the ground in Afghanistan or Pakistan where terrorists have easy access to advanced US weaponry.
Al-Zawahiri had
passed his prime and was rumored
to be in bad health. He was rarely seen in public. Al-Zawahiri’s obsolescence was evident as he struggled
to keep up with younger more radical terrorist groups such as ISIS.
The most troubling
aspect of this news is the fact that Al-Zawahiri was living in the most
affluent and influential localities in Afghanistan and with support from the
Taliban.>>>a
This is merely the tip of the iceberg, there are obviously several
other terror groups that have made Afghanistan their home and are planning
dastardly attacks on the civilized world.
Also appears on American Thinker
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