While the media seem to have written off the notion that Zawahiri was killed in the attack on Damadola. I'd wait to see if we get another video of him before jumping to conclusions.

The day after the bombing, a small but curious report appeared in the Pakistan press:

PESHAWAR: Two men were killed after a landmine exploded on a dirt road in a village in the Bajaur Agency, a local resident said on Monday.

One of the men died at the scene in Jangzai village, said Sharif Khan, a resident of the village. The second man died of injuries while he was being taken to a hospital, Khan said. The explosion occurred on Sunday and both men were in their 30s, he said. There was no official confirmation of the blast and it was not known who may have planted the explosive in Jangzai. The town is about five kilometres from Damadola, a village where an alleged Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) air strike on Friday killed at least 17 people. [emphasis added] 

My guess is that if Zawahiri was coming to dinner at Damadola he could not have been far from that village in this remote, hard to move area——say about 5 kilometers away. Who was killed, why and how the IED appeared in this out—of—the—way spot is unknown, but I think a connection to the Damadola strike is far from unthinkable.

Adding to my suspicions, today, CNN reports that some of those killed in the Friday dinner attack were Egyptian (as is Zawahiri). I think it perfectly safe to assume he'd feel safer surrounded by his countrymen, and these guys weren't just there to sample the groats in Damadola.

WASHINGTON (CNN) —— Some of the foreigners killed in last Friday's U.S. airstrike in the remote Pakistani village of Damadola were of Egyptian origin, according to a knowledgeable source.

U.S. officials have said "very solid" intelligence indicated that senior al Qaeda members were expected to attend a dinner celebrating the end of the Muslim holiday of Eid and that Osama Bin Laden's top deputy, Ayman al—Zawahiri, could very well be among them.

Although these officials believe a number of "significant" al Qaeda figures were killed in the attack, there is no evidence so far that al—Zawahiri was among them. Pakistani officials have said he apparently was not there.

Clarice Feldman    1 18 06