Global Affairs

Zawahiri's killing confirms Biden's 'over the horizon' counter-terrorism strategy

But real doubts persist over the ability of the US to prevent Afghanistan from returning to its role as the launchpad of international terrorism and does not mean the end of Al-Qaeda as well as its local offshoots around the world.

The building (left) in Kabul in which Al-Qaeda leader Zawahiri was probably living at the time of the strike that killed him. PHOTO: AFP
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Just over a decade ago, Mr Joe Biden advised the Obama administration, in which he served as vice-president, against authorising the commando operation in Pakistan that killed Osama bin Laden, the leader of the Al-Qaeda terrorist network.

Now that he has inherited Mr Barack Obama's seat in the Oval Office, President Biden has taken credit for ordering the killing of Osama's successor, Ayman al-Zawahiri. "I promised the Americans that we would continue to take effective action against terrorism in Afghanistan and other countries, and that's exactly what we did," a triumphant Mr Biden said.

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