According to five persons with knowledge of the situation, Ayman al-Zawahri, the leader of al-Qaeda, was killed in Afghanistan by a CIA drone strike, reports AP.
According to one individual who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the situation, current and former officials first heard Sunday afternoon that al-Zawahri had been killed in a drone strike, but the administration withheld the information until his death could be confirmed, AP reported.
The United States carried out a “successful” counterterrorism operation on a significant al-Qaeda target, according to White House officials, who declined to confirm whether al-Zawahri was killed. They also added that “there were no civilian casualties.”
BBC Afghanistan and Pakistan correspondent Secunder Kermani tweeted and said, “This is believed to be the house in central Kabul where Al Qaeda leader al Zawahiri was staying & killed in a US drone strike, (another location apparently also hit). Taliban preventing media getting close, insisting there’s nothing to see, but we & others had guns pointed at us.
The Chenab Times News Desk
