Ayman al-Zawahiri from surgeon to key plotter of 9/11 attacks

Washington, Aug 02: Ayman al-Zawahiri the chief of the Al-Qaeda was killed in a US drone strike on Saturday and the same was confirmed early this morning by President Joe Biden.

Zawahiri an Egyptian national was made head of the Al-Qaeda following the death of Osama Bin Laden.

He was born on Jun 19 1951 in Giza and on June 11 2011 he was named as the successor to Bin Laden.

Zawahiri obtained a degree in civil engineering and he was also a surgeon in the Egyptian Army for three years. At the age of 30 he was arrested along with several others for the assassination of President Anwar Sadat in October 1981. A member of the Muslim Brotherhood at the time, he was said to have been tortured in prison.

In 1998 he formed the Egyptian Islamic Jihad and merged it with the Al-Qaeda.

Being a close aide of Laden, he was instrumental in plotting several attacks in the United States such as the August 1988 bombings which targeted the US embassies in Dar es Salam and Nairobi. He was also one of the key plotter of the deadly 9/11 terror attacks in the United States.

Following the 9/11 attacks, the US State Department announced a reward of up to $25 million for information leading to his capture.