Another al-Qaida leader falls

WASHINGTON — The death of Atiyah Abd al-Rahman in an Aug. 22 drone attack in Pakistan may appear to be just another in the revolving-door fatalities among al-Qaida’s operations chiefs. But it was a crucial blow to the core group that once surrounded Osama bin Laden.

Atiyah, as he was known t

o analysts, was bin Laden’s channel to the world. Their correspondence was the most important prize taken from bin Laden’s compound when he was killed May 2. They talked about everything: strategy, personnel, operations, political setbacks. Whatever thread still held al-Qaida together passed from bin Laden through to Atiyah.

The Libyan-born Atiyah’s death blunts al-Qaida’s ability to stage a new mega-attack against America; it brings the top leadership of the group closer to extinction; and it increases the likelihood that the organization’s center of gravity will shift from Pakistan’s tribal areas to one of the affiliates, such as the robust al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, based in Yemen.

Asked recently to name the most important remaining leader in al-Qaida, a senior U.S. official had said it was Atiyah. He explained that the nominal successor to bin Laden, Ayman al-Zawahiri, was actually a secondary figure — more a leader of the group’s Egyptian wing than of al-Qaida as a whole. It would be in America’s interest if Zawahiri rather than Atiyah were dominant, this official said, because Zawahiri was a divisive figure whose ad-hoc tactics were less threatening to America.

One of the subjects discussed frequently between Atiyah and bin Laden was whether al-Qaida’s ferociously violent tactics were alienating Muslims in the countries where it operated. That led to a fascinating 2005 missive from Atiyah to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the head of al-Qaida in Iraq, chiding him for targeting Shiite Muslims in his scorched-earth campaign in Iraq against America and its allies. And in more recent years, the two discussed the danger of seeking an Islamic “caliphate” in areas where al-Qaida appeared strong, since that extremist move would likely alienate other Muslims. Better, they reasoned, to keep assaulting America.

Atiyah’s death is especially important as the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States approaches — and not just for symbolic reasons. Bin Laden had been working with Atiyah to plan a spectacular strike against a U.S. target, pegged to the 9/11 anniversary. It’s not clear how far that planning had progressed, but whatever its level, it will be hampered, maybe even disrupted, by the death of the man whom bin Laden charged with organizing the details of the plot.

It’s not clear how the CIA was able to target Atiyah in the Aug. 22 attack over North Waziristan, or how he had been maintaining his sanctuary there. The cache of material taken from the bin Laden compound in Abbottabad last May didn’t include much that would help pinpoint the location of operatives in the field, according to the senior U.S. official, and Atiyah would have understood that anything that disclosed his whereabouts had been compromised. But on targeting and other operational details, U.S. officials are tight-lipped.

Atiyah fell to a Predator drone attack, the weapon that he and bin Laden had complained about so bitterly in their correspondence. Atiyah had told his boss that this U.S. “intelligence war,” as bin Laden had called it, had made it nearly impossible for al-Qaida to move, communicate, recruit or train in the tribal areas of Pakistan. They had discussed whether al-Qaida should move its headquarters to someplace safer. That relocation seems more likely, now that the man who anchored the group’s presence in Pakistan is dead.

David Ignatius is a Washington Post columnist. His email address is davidignatius@washpost.com.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Opinion

toon
Editorial cartoons for Sunday, May 18

A sketchy look at the news of the day.… Continue reading

Wildfire smoke builds over Darrington on Friday, Sept. 11, 2020 in Darrington, Wa. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Editorial: Loss of research funds threat to climate resilience

The Trump administration’s end of a grant for climate research threatens solutions communities need.

In the summer of 2021, members of the Skagit River System Cooperative counted fish in the restored estuary of Leque Island near Stanwood. What they found was encouraging. (Chuck Taylor / The Herald) 20210817
Comment: Ignoring the climate choice to adapt or die

The loss of funding for climate adaptation science will leave regions to weather impacts on their own.

Reverse Congress librarian’s unjust firing

I am beyond heartbroken by the unceremonious firing of Dr. Carla Hayden,… Continue reading

Should states handle issue of immigration?

OK, here we go again. The southern states have been screaming ‘states’… Continue reading

Candidates without opponents should decline donations

No candidates registered to run against Jared Mead or Nate Nehring for… Continue reading

Why does Trump need three 747s?

If children can make do with two dolls instead of 30 while… Continue reading

No doubt about what Trump is doing to nation

There is no doubt about it. The Trump administration is in reality… Continue reading

Among the programs sponsored by Humanities Washington was a Prime Time Family Reading Event at the Granite Falls Sno-Isle Library in March. (Rachel Jacobson)
Comment: Loss of humanities grants robs us of connections

The loss of $10 million in humanities funding in the state diminishes what celebrates human creativity.

Comment: Democrats’ tax plan aimed at ‘villain,’ hit consumers

The governor should veto a B&O tax increase that will hit food prices at stores and restaurants.

Comment: Compare tax choices of 3 states and watch what happens

Idaho and Montana cut their taxes. Washington raised taxes to historic levels. Will an exodus result?

Sarah Weiser / The Herald
Air Force One touches ground Friday morning at Boeing in Everett.
PHOTO SHOT 02172012
Editorial: There’s no free lunch and no free Air Force One

Qatar’s offer of a 747 to President Trump solves nothing and leaves the nation beholden.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.