I Lived a โFrat Partyโ Life in the House Where Al Qaeda Chief Was Killed, U.S. Aid Worker Says
Dan SmockDan Smock loved the view from the balcony of the house in Kabul he shared with fellow American aid workers. It looked out over the rooftops of the Afghan capital, with stunning snowcapped mountains in the distance. Smock liked it so much that he says he โhung out on that balcony a lotโ during his time in Afghanistan. Someone else who came to appreciate that same view was 9/11 plotter and al Qaeda boss Ayman al-Zawahiri, who was taking the air on the same balcony early Sunday morning whe
news.yahoo.comZawahiriโs killing and the bleak legacy of the โwar on terrorโ
The United States could only locate and take out Ayman al-Zawahiri because he was ensconced in an Afghan capital that the United States and its allies had effectively ceded to the Taliban. The pathos and irony of it all are hard to ignore.
washingtonpost.comAl Qaeda Leader Killed In Afghanistan By American Drone : Consider This from NPR : NPR
Ayman al-Zawahiri, the leader of Al Qaeda, was killed by a U.S. drone strike in Kabul, Afghanistan over the weekend. For years, al-Zawahiri was Osama Bin Laden's deputy โ and was known as the mastermind behind the 9-11 attacks. NPR's Greg Myre and Diaa Hadid discuss the implications of al-Zawahiri's death for the U.S., Afghanistan, and America's decades-long war on terror.This episode also features reporting from NPR's Steve Inskeep.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.
npr.orgAl Qaeda leader killed by U.S. in Afghanistan, sources say
US President Joe Biden speaks to the travelling press after taking part in a working session with Saudi Arabias Crown Prince at the Al-Salam Palace in Jeddah, on July 15, 2022. WASHINGTON โ President Joe Biden will address the nation Monday evening following a CIA counterterrorism strike in Afghanistan that killed Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri. "The operation was successful and there were no civilian casualties," said a senior Biden administration official, speaking on the condition of anonymity. Biden is slated to speak from the White House at 7:30 p.m. Sunday's drone strike is the first known CIA counterterrorism operation since Kabul fell to the Taliban last year.
cnbc.comPompeo hits Iran for al-Qaida support on his way out
WASHINGTON โ Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday accused Iran of having secret ties with the al-Qaida network and imposed new sanctions on several senior Iranian officials. In a speech to the National Press Club just, Pompeo attacked Iran for alleged secret ties with al-Qaida, citing newly declassified intelligence suggesting Tehran harbored the groupโs No. Pompeo claimed that ties between al-Qaida and Iran vastly improved in 2015, when the Obama administration, along with France, Germany and Britain, were finalizing the nuclear deal. โIran decided to allow al-Qaida to establish a new operational headquarters, on the condition that al-Qaida operatives inside abide by the regimeโs rules governing al-Qaidaโs stay inside the country.โHe said that since 2015, Iran has given al-Qaida leaders greater freedom of movement inside Iran and have provided safe havens and logistical support to al-Qaida. He said Iran has had โa crystal-clear and defendable recordโ in fighting al-Qaida and IS terrorism.
Pompeo to designate Yemen's Houthi rebels as terrorist group
(Saul Loeb/Pool Photo via AP, File)WASHINGTON โ Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has announced that he will designate Yemenโs Iran-backed Houthi rebels as a โforeign terrorist organizationโ as time runs down on the Trump administration. In addition to the Houthi designation, Pompeo in coming days is also expected to likely re-designate Cuba as a โstate sponsor of terrorism," according to several admininstration officials. On Saturday Pompeo angered China when he declared restrictions on U.S. diplomatic contacts with Taiwanese officials to be null and void. The administration had been weighing the formal designation of the Houthi rebels as a โforeign terrorist organizationโ for months. On Saturday, Pompeo announced that he was rescinding all restrictions on contacts between U.S. diplomats and Taiwanese officials.
Yemen, China, Cuba top Pompeo to-do list as time runs down
The announcement comes as Pompeo and his top aides rush to complete actions they believe will cement their legacy and the presidentโs. In addition to the Houthi designation, Pompeo in coming days is also expected to likely re-designate Cuba as a โstate sponsor of terrorism," according to several admininstration officials. On Saturday Pompeo angered China when he declared restrictions on U.S. diplomatic contacts with Taiwanese officials to be null and void. โThe United States recognizes concerns that these designations will have an impact on the humanitarian situation in Yemen,โ Pompeo said in his statement. On Saturday, Pompeo announced that he was rescinding all restrictions on contacts between U.S. diplomats and Taiwanese officials.
US, Israel worked together to track and kill al-Qaida No. 2
The United States and Israel worked together to track and kill Abu Mohammed al-Masri, a senior al-Qaida operative in Iran earlier this year, a bold intelligence operation by the two allied nations that came as the Trump administration was ramping up pressure on Tehran. (AP Photo/Sayyid Azim, File)WASHINGTON โ The United States and Israel worked together to track and kill a senior al-Qaida operative in Iran earlier this year, a bold intelligence operation by the two allied nations that came as the Trump administration was ramping up pressure on Tehran. The revelations that Iran was harboring an al-Qaida leader could help Israel bolster its case with the new U.S. administration. Iran denied the reports, saying the government is not harboring any al-Qaida leaders and blaming the U.S. and Israel for trying to foment anti-Iranian sentiment. Hezbollah never commented on reports and Lebanese security officials did not report that any citizens were killed in Tehran.
On this day: August 7
1998: The United States embassy bombings in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Nairobi, Kenya, kill approximately 212 people. The attacks were linked to local members of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad, brought Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri to the attention of the American public for the first time, and resulted in the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation placing bin Laden on its Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list. Hide Caption