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- Taliban are investigating a US “declare” that it killed Al Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri.
- The US killed Zawahiri with a missile fired from a drone, it claims.
- Taliban leaders have remained largely tight-lipped concerning the Sunday drone strike.
The Taliban are investigating a US “declare” that al Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri was killed in a US drone strike in Kabul, a Taliban official mentioned on Thursday, indicating the group’s management weren’t conscious of his presence there.
The US killed Zawahiri with a missile fired from a drone whereas he stood on a balcony at his Kabul hideout on Sunday, US officers mentioned, within the largest blow to the militants since Osama bin Laden was shot lifeless greater than a decade in the past.
“The federal government and the management wasn’t conscious of what’s being claimed, nor any hint there,” Suhail Shaheen, the designated Taliban consultant to the United Nations, who relies in Doha, advised journalists in a message.
“Investigation is underway now to seek out out concerning the veracity of the declare,” he mentioned, including that the outcomes of the investigation can be shared publicly.
Taliban leaders have remained largely tight-lipped concerning the Sunday drone strike and haven’t confirmed the presence or demise of Zawahiri in Kabul.
High Taliban leaders have been holding prolonged discussions about how to answer the US drone strike, three sources within the group mentioned. Learn full story
How the Taliban react might have vital repercussions because the group seeks worldwide legitimacy and entry to billions of {dollars} in frozen funds, following their defeat of a US-backed authorities a 12 months in the past.
Zawahiri, an Egyptian physician, was intently concerned within the Sept. 11, 2001, assaults on the US and was one of many world’s most wished males.
His demise in Kabul raises questions on whether or not he acquired sanctuary from the Taliban, who had assured the US as a part of a 2020 settlement on the withdrawal of US-led forces that they might not harbour different militant teams.
Shaheen mentioned the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan – the identify the Taliban use for the nation and their authorities – was dedicated to the settlement, signed within the Qatari capital, Doha.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken mentioned the Taliban had “grossly violated” the settlement by internet hosting and sheltering Zawahiri.
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