FBI Director Christopher Wray was “not surprised” al Qaeda leader Ayman al Zawahiri was in a Kabul home owned by Haqqani Taliban leader Sirajuddin Haqqani — seemingly confirming details about the strike the Biden administration hasn’t yet.
The White House has said Haqqani Taliban officials were aware of al Zawahiri’s presence in Afghanistan and that the Haqqanis had tried to cover up his presence post-strike, but has declined to confirm reports that he was staying at a safe house linked to Haqqani.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) praised the strike as a “good thing” during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing Thursday, and asked Wray if he was “surprised that, one, he was in Kabul, al Zawahiri, staying at the house, a guest house owned by the Haqqani No. 2 guy of the Taliban?”
Wray replied that he was “not surprised, but disappointed.”
Graham followed up by asking: “What does it tell us about the relationship between al Qaeda and the Taliban if the leader of al Qaeda is staying in a house owned by the No. 2 guy in the Taliban?”
“Nothing good,” Wray replied.
TERRORIST RESPONSIBLE FOR BLACK HAWK DOWN MAY BE NEXT AL QAEDA LEADER
The Taliban, the Haqqani network, and al Qaeda remain deeply intertwined in Afghanistan. The Taliban gave al Qaeda safe haven in Afghanistan before 9/11, and they continue to protect and fight alongside it for two decades after the U.S. invasion. Numerous members of the al Qaeda-linked Haqqani network received top positions in the Taliban’s government last year after its rapid takeover amid a chaotic U.S. withdrawal. Sirajuddin Haqqani became the deputy head of the Taliban and its interior minister.
When asked Tuesday if Haqqani had been aware that al Zawahiri was in Kabul, National Security Council strategic communications coordinator John Kirby wouldn’t answer directly: “There were senior members of the Haqqani network that were aware. I’m not going to go any further than that.”
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre deferred to Kirby when asked similar questions.
“Senior Haqqani Taliban figures were aware of Zawahiri’s presence in Kabul,” a senior Biden official said Monday. “We are also aware that Haqqani Taliban members took actions after the strike to conceal Zawahiri’s former presence at the location.”
The Associated Press reported the safe house where al Zawahiri was staying “was the home of a top aide to” Haqqani, according to a “senior U.S. intelligence official.” The New York Times originally said the house “was owned by a top aide to” Haqqani, according to “one American analyst,” although it modified that to saying “the safe house was owned by an aide to senior officials in the Haqqani network” in a subsequent story.
Wray said in September he was concerned that Haqqani received a top role in the Taliban government.
The Biden administration has attempted to draw a distinction between the Haqqanis and the Taliban.
The State Department has repeatedly said the Taliban and the Haqqani network are “separate entities,” although it has admitted they are affiliated.
The Pentagon said last year there is “commingling” and “marbling” between the Taliban and the Haqqanis, while national security adviser Jake Sullivan said, “The Taliban, obviously, to a considerable extent, are integrated with the Haqqani Network.”
Kirby also declined to say Tuesday what repercussions there would be for the Taliban for protecting al Zawahiri.
Graham asked Wray on Thursday if he was worried about an attack on the United States emanating from Afghanistan.
“So, we are,” Wray said, adding: “Especially now that we’re out, I’m worried about the potential loss of sources and collection over there, so we’re going to have growing intelligence gaps, and I’m worried about the possibility that we will see al Qaeda reconstitute, that ISIS-K potentially taking advantage of the deteriorating security environment, and I’m worried about terrorists including here in the United States being inspired by what they see over there.”
Wray said the al Zawahiri strike “reinforces the threat of foreign terrorist organizations like al Qaeda attempting to reconstitute in Afghanistan.”
Al Zawahiri took over the terrorist group after Osama bin Laden was killed in a U.S. special forces raid while hiding out in Pakistan in 2011. Al Zawahiri and bin Laden both pledged allegiance to top Taliban leaders.
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ISIS-K, the Islamic State’s affiliate in Afghanistan, was responsible for the August 2021 suicide bombing at the Kabul airport, which killed 13 U.S. service members and dozens of others. The Taliban, including Haqqani forces, were providing security outside the airport when the bomber got through.
