Al Qaeda's Zawahiri survived harsh mountains, killed in posh Kabul locality

FILE PHOTO: A photo of Al Qaeda's new leader, Egyptian Ayman al-Zawahiri, is seen in this still image taken from a video released on September 12, 2011. SITE Monitoring Service/Handout via REUTERS TV

(Reuters) - Al Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri, who had a $25 million U.S. bounty on his head, survived years in Afghanistan's rugged mountains but his last months were spent in an upscale Kabul neighbourhood where top officials from the Taliban also live.

U.S. officials said Hellfire missiles from a U.S. drone killed the 71-year-old when he came out on the balcony of a safe house in Kabul on Sunday morning. U.S. President Joe Biden said no civilians were killed.