We control Afghanistan, says al-Qa'ida deputy
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Osama bin Laden's deputy, Ayman al-Zawahri, said mujahedeen, or holy fighters, have taken control of much of Afghanistan and driven US forces into the "trenches," according to a tape aired on Al-Jazeera television yesterday.
The bespectacled Egyptian surgeon said "southern and eastern Afghanistan have completely become an open field for the mujahedeen".
"The Americans are huddled in their trenches, refusing to confront the holy warriors despite the holy warriors shelling, shooting and cutting the routes around them," Zawahiri said in excerpts of the tape aired by the Qatar-based station.
The last statement purported to have been made by Zawahiri surfaced on 11 June, when an audiotape was broadcast by Al-Arabiya television, on which the speaker said a US plan for reform in the Middle East was a bid to replace Arab leaders.
Al-Jazeera said it had received the latest Zawahiri tape exclusively, but it was not clear how or when it received it.
The release of the tape comes two days before the third anniversary of the 11 September attacks on the United States, which were blamed on al-Qa'ida. A US-led coalition launched attacks on Afghanistan aimed at destroying al-Qa'ida camps and the Taliban government that had hosted Bin Laden and his followers.
A day before the second anniversary of the attacks on New York and Washington DC, Zawahiri and Bin Laden also appeared on another tape aired by Arab television.
* Pakistani warplanes pummelled a suspected al-Qa'ida training facility near the border with Afghanistan yesterday, flattening a vast mud-brick compound and killing at least 50 fighters, the majority of them Uzbeks, Arabs and Chechens, the military said.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments