Ayman al-Zawahiri, who led al-Qaeda since Osama Bin Laden’s death in 2011, is dead from a U.S. drone strike on a residential area in Kabul. Al-Zawahiri’s death is an end of an era—he was an early member of al-Qaeda and an active jihadist for decades before that. The al-Qaeda he left behind endured despite an aggressive and devastating U.S. counterterrorism campaign, but it is also weak, with far less operational capacity and political influence than it had around the time of 9/11. A more charismatic and capable leader might revive the organization, but he will face many difficulties in trying to revive the once-dominant jihadist organization, not least of which is a well-institutionalized U.S. and global counterterrorism apparatus.
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