Al-Zawahiri’s death: US issues ‘worldwide caution’ for citizens abroad following death of al-Qaeda chief
- The State Department said it believed there is a higher potential for anti-American violence given the death of Ayman al-Zawahiri
- Zawahiri was killed on Sunday in Kabul, when a drone fired Hellfire missiles, according to a senior US administration official
In a Worldwide Caution Update, the department said it believed “there is a higher potential for anti-American violence given the death of Ayman al-Zawahiri on July 31, 2022.”
“Current information suggests that terrorist organizations continue to plan terrorist attacks against US interests in multiple regions across the globe.”
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Al-Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri killed in US drone strike on house in Afghan capital Kabul
“As terrorist attacks often occur without warning, US citizens are strongly encouraged to maintain a high level of vigilance and practice good situational awareness when travelling abroad,” the department added in the update.
The US operation involved several months of intelligence work to track his family to Kabul and identify the target, according to National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby.
“This mission really took shape over the course of the last six, seven months. It was really sort of early this year, as you heard the president say, that we got indications that Mr. Zawahiri had moved into Afghanistan,” Kirby told CNN on Tuesday.