The death of Ayman al-Zawahiri prompted the White House to wake up Joe Biden from his nap and run a victory lap, but it raised enough questions that even the pro-Biden Washington Post has called out the obvious.
“What was Zawahiri doing on Afghan soil in the first place, sheltered in a building owned by a top aide to senior Taliban leader and interior minister Sirajuddin Haqqani?” the Post editorial board asked. “How many more al-Qaeda operatives are nestled in Kabul’s residential districts? After the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, the U.S. goal was to deny al-Qaeda a haven in Afghanistan. Now, it is back – and seemingly safe.”
Rep. Mike Turner (R-Ohio) says that al-Zawahiri’s presence in Afghanistan is proof Biden lied last year when he said there was no reason to stay in Afghanistan last year.
“The president was not being truthful,” Turner said. “Now, as they try to take a victory lap for their actions of killing Zawahri in Afghanistan, they’re having to admit that his presence in Afghanistan is evidence that al Qaeda has a foothold and a presence and a relationship with the Taliban.”
“What interest do we have in Afghanistan at this point, with al Qaeda gone?” Biden asked last year in defense of his decision to withdraw from Afghanistan hastily. “We went to Afghanistan for the express purpose of getting rid of al Qaeda in Afghanistan as well as – as well as – getting Osama bin Laden. And we did.”
Many military experts believe that the botched withdrawal from Afghanistan is responsible for al-Qaeda reemerging in Afghanistan. The nation is certainly a terrorist haven once again, and twenty years of lost blood and treasure were wasted by Biden’s desire for a 9-11 anniversary photo-op.
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