Editorial | Al-Qaeda still a threat, whether nominal leader is dead or alive
- The US claims Hamza bin Laden – son of the late and notorious Osama bin Laden – has been killed. But whatever the truth, the terrorist group remains a danger to the world
The killing of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden by American special forces at his Pakistani hideout in May 2011 was quickly announced by then-US president Barack Obama and acknowledged by the Islamist terrorist group.
But reports that his son, being groomed for leadership, is dead, are not being so promptly confirmed.
The details being circulated by anonymous American officials are scant and the abundant questions mean scepticism is rife. But whether true or not, such an event, while symbolically important, would have little impact on the extremists’ operational capabilities.
The accounts being circulated by American intelligence sources claim Hamza bin Laden was killed in an air strike during US President Donald Trump’s first two years in office. They are not more specific as to timing, nor do they say where or how he died.
Al-Qaeda is usually upfront about such claims and has been silent; the US Federal Bureau of Investigation still has his name on a “most wanted” list that offers a US$1 million reward for information on him.
But there has been no public communication from him since May last year, when he called in an article in an Afghan al-Qaeda publication for the avenging of his father’s killing.