When Ayman al-Zawahri After Osama bin Laden Al-Qaeda leader, extinguished on the veranda Neighbors heard an explosion near a pink house in an upmarket district of Kabul, Afghanistan’s capital, but saw no signs of an explosion.
A nearby neighbor told Reuters he heard loud noises on Sunday but strangely didn’t see the usual turmoil most Kabul residents associate with a bomb or missile attack involving smoke and fire. , the ballistic chatter class came to presume that the attack was carried out by the infamous “Flying Gins”. highly publicized in the 1980sAs brutal as it looks, it cuts through walls and vehicle roofs to destroy its targets.
Officially called the R9X Hellfire Missile, this weapon looks like it came straight out of a James Bond brainstorming session. The missile does not carry a warhead or explosives, instead using kinetic energy and six devastating blades to destroy its target. Bellingcat review of weapons.
The weapon’s accuracy capabilities mean less chance of collateral damage. And indeed, no civilians were killed in the attack on Zawari. A clear sign of its use is the absence of explosions. In the case of Ms. Zawahiri, 71, only the window on her balcony, where she was standing alone, shattered.
Although the United States does not claim to have Hellfire “Flying Gins”, several reports in recent years have raised the argument that Hellfires were used for precision killings in Syria, Libya, Somalia and Yemen. It seems to point to irrefutable evidence. According to some news reports, this is the first suspected use in Afghanistan.
The Taliban, which may have let their guard down from protecting al-Qaeda chiefs, condemned the attack with spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, calling it a violation of “international principles.” And he beheaded hundreds of people.
Several sources who spoke to the Associated Press and Reuters said the CIA led the intelligence operation that led to the attack. He tweeted that he had not violated Pakistani airspace.
Zawahiri lived safely in the mountains before being moved to Kabul when the Taliban took control following a swift U.S. withdrawal last year, according to Reuters.
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