Saif al-Adel, an Egyptian former military officer, has been appointed interim leader of al Qaeda after the killing of Osama bin Laden. It is thought he will be a caretaker until a council can decide on a permanent head.
An Egyptian former military commander, Saif al-Adel, has reportedly been named as the acting leader of al Qaeda, indicating that al Qaeda wants to avoid a prolonged power vacuum at the top and is likely still considering who will step into bin Laden’s shoes.
Pakistani media as well as CNN and Al Jazeera have reported that Adel will take over in at least in the interim, not the terror group’s deputy leader under Osama bin Laden, Ayman al-Zawahiri, who many observers had expected to move into the top position.
“The speed in which Adel was named was due to necessity and comes at a difficult time for al Qaeda,” Yasem Mohammed, an Iraqi commentator and al Qaeda expert, told Deutsche Welle. “Adel was considered a noncontroversial choice due to his important position as a military commando.”
Adel was appointed at a meeting on May 10 during a meeting of several high-ranking al Qaeda members on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, according to Al Jazeera.
