Article snippet: Osama bin Laden who had emerged as a high-profile member of al Qaeda. Trump said in a statement released by the White House that bin Laden was killed in a U.S. counterterrorism operation near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, though he did not provide an exact date for the death. “The loss of Hamza bin Ladin not only deprives al-Qa’ida of important leadership skills and the symbolic connection to his father, but undermines important operational activities of the group. Hamza bin Ladin was responsible for planning and dealing with various terrorist groups,” Trump said in the statement. News reports emerged earlier this summer indicating that bin Laden had died. He had last made a public statement in 2018. Defense Secretary according to the United Nations. He was believed to have been in his early 30s. Trump's statement confirming bin Laden's death comes just days after the 18th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks that drew the U.S. into wars in Afghanistan and later Iraq. The U.S. under former President George W. Bush led a coalition to oust the Taliban from power following the 9/11 attacks after the group had allowed al Qaeda safe harbor for years in Afghanistan. The assault pushed al Qaeda's upper echelon, including Osama bin Laden, to flee to Pakistan. Though al Qaeda has been decimated in Afghanistan since the U.S. invasion in 2001, officials estimate a small number of fighters still loyal to the terror group remain in the country, Reuters reported this week. More ... Link to the full article to read more