'In its reply to CNN al Qaeda declares Afghanistan its victory. "The Americans are now defeated," and draw a parallel to the Soviet Union's withdrawal three decades ago from the country and its subsequent collapse: "The US war in Afghanistan played key role in hitting US economy."
That line echoes the rhetoric of bin Laden himself, who promoted the oversimplified idea that the Soviets bankrupted themselves in Afghanistan. The cost of the US wars on terror has reached into the trillions, but the 9/11 attacks did not bring on US economic collapse. Al Qaeda admits the toll the war has taken on them, saying it sent "most" al Qaeda central fighters to Syria where "some of them have been martyred in recent years."