With the announcement that Ayman al-Zawahiri had been killed in a CIA drone strike over the weekend, lawmakers immediately took to social media to comment on the news. Florida Rep. Michael Waltz (R) released a statement, praising the strike that ensured “Ayman al-Zawahiri has met a deserved justice."
Vice President Kamala Harris (D) made the announcement on Twitter, praising the strike that killed al-Zawahiri in a safe house in Kabul. Admitting that "the American people and the world are now safer," Harris went on to shed light in a series of tweets, detailing what led to the air strike.
When @POTUS ended our military mission in Afghanistan, he made a promise that we would maintain the ability to protect Americans from terrorist threats. Tonight, with the killing of al-Qa’ida’s leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, it is clear we are meeting that commitment.
— Vice President Kamala Harris (@VP) August 2, 2022
In his statement, Rep. Waltz expressed that “after decades of orchestrating terrorist attacks against innocent lives," that "Ayman al-Zawahiri has met a deserved justice."
" After helping plan the September 11th attacks against our homeland and countless other acts of terror, his days of menacing the world are over," Waltz added, congratulating "the Department of Defense, intelligence community, and the Administration for carrying out this successful operation."
Waltz further explained that “Zawahiri felt safe enough to return to Afghanistan after spending decades in hiding. This is also a stark reminder that Al Qaeda is continuing to plot further attacks again our country." Because of this, Waltz noted that "the intelligence community has been clear that they fully intend to attack our homeland again" because "the threat of global terrorism has not gone away."
In turn, Waltz warns that the United States "must remain vigilant against those who continue to wage war against our freedoms and country.”
Florida Senator Rick Scott praised the lethality of the "worlds's most lethal force."
"The American military is the world’s most lethal force and will never stop hunting these terrorist killers. Let this be a lesson to them: if you hurt or threaten Americans, there is nowhere safe to hide," stated Sen. Scott/
President Joe Biden (D) announced to the nation that al-Zawahiri had been killed, warning other terrorist organizations that similar actions could be directed to them. Saudi Arabia joined lawmakers in commenting on the attack, welcoming the death of al-Zawahiri because he "is one of the terrorist leaders who led operations in the U.S. and Saudi Arabia."
