Word: zawahiri
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That claim, of course, is undermined every day that bin Laden and his deputy and chief tactician, Ayman al-Zawahiri, remain on the loose. But bin Laden's resurfacing has come at a time when the leadership of al-Qaeda appears to be under as much strain as at any time since the fall of the Taliban in 2001. Antiterrorism experts say the Saudi-born terrorist is no longer in active contact with field commanders, and his ability to plan and direct specific operations is hampered by his isolation. In Iraq, scene of al-Qaeda's deadliest strikes since 9/11...
...released at all. Despite directly addressing Americans, its primary purpose may nonetheless be to remind Arab and Muslim audiences of his existence, and to reiterate his claim to primacy among the jihadists. Bin Laden last message was released in December 2004, although the movement's No. 2, Ayman al-Zawahiri, has continued to release occasional videotaped missives from his hideout in the wilds of western Pakistan. (Zawahiri's decision to pass up a dinner invitation last Friday appears to have spared him from a missile strike on a remote mountain village, where Pakistani intelligence officials say four other Qaeda operatives...
...Although Zarqawi two years ago swore an oath of loyalty to Bin Laden, he is believed previously to have had something of a competitive relationship with the al-Qaeda leadership. And the public statements attributed to Zarqawi and those of Ayman al-Zawahiri have been noticeably at odds over questions of beheading kidnap victims and of wanton violence against Shiite Muslims. Zarqawi may have embraced the Qaeda brand with Bin Laden as its figurehead, but his essentially autonomous field operation in Iraq has become the movement's center of gravity...
...attempt to kill Ayman al-Zawahiri, al-Qaeda's second in command, was indeed a failure last week, it could prove a costly one. In human terms alone, the price was high. Local reports say 18 people, mostly women and children, were killed by the CIA-directed missile strike on the village of Damadola, close to Pakistan's northwest border. U.S. officials say al-Zawahiri was the intended target...
...tests on the victims will determine whether al-Zawahiri was among the dead, but at week's end Pakistani officials were saying he had not even been in the village. An Arabic TV station, quoting sources close to al-Qaeda, said Saturday he was alive and well, while U.S. officials insisted it was too early to conclude that they had missed...