Bin Laden deputy Zawahri to lead al Qaeda

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Al Qaeda's long-serving number two, Egyptian Ayman al-Zawahri, has taken over the leadership after the killing of Osama bin Laden, the group said on Islamist websites on Thursday.

Bin Laden's lieutenant and the brains behind much of al Qaeda's strategy, Zawahri vowed this month to press ahead with its campaign against the United States and its allies.

"The general leadership of al Qaeda group, after the completion of consultation, announces that Sheikh Dr. Ayman Zawahri, may God give him success, has assumed responsibility for command of the group," the network said in a statement posted on Islamist websites which it often uses.

A U.S. counter-terrorism official told Reuters the United States believed the announcement was genuine, but the State Department was dismissive of its significance. "Frankly, it barely matters," spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said.

The bespectacled Zawahri had been seen as bin Laden's most likely successor after the man held responsible for the September 11, 2001, attacks in New York and Washington was shot dead by U.S. commandos in Pakistan 45 days ago.

Zawahri's whereabouts are unknown, although he has long been thought to be hiding along the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan. The United States is offering a $25 million reward for any information leading to his capture or conviction.

In Washington, a senior U.S. official said Zawahri would have a hard time leading the Islamist group "while focusing on his own survival."

"He hasn't demonstrated strong leadership or organizational skills during his time in AQ," the official said. "Unlike many of AQ's top members, Zawahri has not had actual combat experience, instead opting to be an armchair general with a 'soft' image."

"LACKS BIN LADEN PRESENCE"

Sajjan Gohel of Asia-Pacific Foundation security consultants said Zawahri had been in practical charge of al Qaeda for many years, but lacked bin Laden's presence and his "ability to unite the different Arab factions within the group."

Fawaz Gerges, a Middle East expert at the London School of Economics, said al Qaeda's militants in south Asia were "on the run," its leaders were deep in hiding, and a new leader would do little to help reverse their fortunes.

As for its branches in other parts of the world, they were "pitted in a fierce local struggle for survival...and are unable to coordinate their actions with the parent organization."
 
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