5/17/2011

“Terrorism expert Peter Bergen reports on CNN International that the Egyptian Saif al-Adel has been appointed as a ‘caretaker’ leader of al-Qaeda, following the death of its emir Osama bin Laden. A Pakistani newspaper article datelined from Rawalpindi, the bustling city near Islamabad that’s home to Pakistan’s army headquarters, corroborates the claim as well, citing unnamed sources. …The decision comes as something of a surprise to those who expected bin Laden’s longstanding deputy, Ayman al-Zawahiri, to fill in for the slain leader. Zawahiri will remain the organization’s spiritual patron, says an article in Pakistan’s The News International, and will ‘monitor international contacts,’ but active command and control will be in the younger Egyptian’s hands.”

 – Ishaan Tharoor, “Al-Qaeda’s Alleged New Leader: Who Is Saif al-Adel?,” Time, May 17, 2011