The U.S. drone strike that killed Ayman al-Zawahri in Kabul on Sunday caught the Taliban leadership both red-handed and flat-footed. Their promises to prevent the country from once again becoming a terrorist haven have been exposed as lies: The al-Qaida leader was living in the Afghan capital, reportedly in a house belonging to a top Taliban leader.
Three days after the killing, the Taliban was still struggling to formulate a response. That might be because Haibatullah Akhundzada, the Taliban’s supreme commander, and his leadership team, recognize both the opportunity and the challenge presented by al-Zawahri’s killing.
As the militant group prepares to celebrate the first anniversary of its return to power after the U.S. military pullout last summer, its goal of securing international recognition as Afghanistan’s legitimate rulers remains unfulfilled. Their pariah status makes it nearly impossible for the Taliban government to manage the country’s economy, which was propped up by foreign aid until the U.S. withdrawal last summer.
