Zawahiri faces hurdles as bin Laden successor

Ayman will have a hard time as Al Qaidas #1, Too Bad.
Since Osamas death, there are now more people on the hunt for Ayman, that's a good thing.
It would be awesome to see Aymans demise before he can pull off anything for Al Qaida.

The Washington Post National
As the new leader of al-Qaeda, Zawahiri will face intense pressure to launch a major strike to avenge bin Laden’s death. But Huthaifa Azzam, citing personal recollections and contacts with al-Qaeda associations, said he doubted that Zawahiri could command a network of operatives required for a complex operation.

“The truth is, he doesn’t have the power to strike back,” Azzam said. “Sept. 11 was carried out by highly motivated people in many different places. Zawahiri can’t pull together something like that.”

U.S. officials said they have seen no indication that such large-scale plot is in the works or that al-Qaeda remains capable of such an attack.

“It’s not like they were only half-heartedly trying to attack us until bin Laden was killed,” a second U.S. counterterrorism official said. “This is an organization with one main mission: to attack the United States. The harder they try, the more risks they’re going to have to take.”

U.S. intelligence officials said that Zawahiri is presumed to be hiding in Pakistan. The trove of materials found at the compound where bin Laden was killed has not provided significant new clues to Zawahiri’s location. But officials said the completion of the decade-long bin Laden manhunt has freed up intelligence resources to pursue other targets, including Zawahiri.