US Drone Strike on Al-Zawahiri: Significance and Implications

The strike against Zawahiri is being hailed as a vindication of the US's 'over-the-horizon' strategy in eradicating terrorism without placing boots on the ground. Al-Qaeda's potential to expand and re-enforce itself and affiliates, however, cannot be written off. Policymakers and...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Policy File 2022
Main Author: Kidwai, Saman Ayesha
Format: Report
Language:English
Subjects:
Institute for Defense Studies and Analyses
Terrorism
Online Access:Request full text
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Summary:The strike against Zawahiri is being hailed as a vindication of the US's 'over-the-horizon' strategy in eradicating terrorism without placing boots on the ground. Al-Qaeda's potential to expand and re-enforce itself and affiliates, however, cannot be written off. Policymakers and intelligence agencies must exploit the power struggles al-Qaeda's emerging leadership will face to minimise the threat it and its dispersed affiliates still pose to the world. While India is engaging with the Taliban, recent developments indicate that re-adjustments would have to be made to the threat assessment matrix.