Dr. Abu Muhammad Ayman al-Zawahiri Appointed as the Amir (Supreme Leader) of al-Qaeda

Sheikh Dr. Abu Muhammad Ayman al-Zawahiri was appointed as the amir (supreme leader) of the al-Qaeda. He was Osama bin-Laden's long-standing lieutenant to lead al-Qaeda. The general command of al-Qaeda announced the appointment and this announcement was made public on 16 June 2011. Ayman al-Zawahiri is a 1959-born former Egyptian surgeon. Saif al-Adel (an Egyptian), the head of the al Qaeda Shura council, was acting as the interim leader of the al-Qaeda; after the death of Osama Bin Laden on 2 May 2011, till the appointment of Ayman al-Zawahiri.

Al-Zawahri, after his appointment as the amir of the al-Qaeda, called on al Qaeda and its affiliates to stop blowing up public places. He also tried to embrace the pro-democracy revolutions sweeping the Middle East in his first pronouncement since the death of bin Laden.