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A statement from Afghanistan's Taliban government confirmed the airstrike, but did not mention al-Zawahri or any other casualties.

It said it "strongly condemns this attack and calls it a clear violation of international principles and the Doha Agreement," the 2020 U.S. pact with the Taliban that led to the withdrawal of American forces.

"Such actions are a repetition of the failed experiences of the past 20 years and are against the interests of the United States of America, Afghanistan, and the region," the statement said.

© Serbian Presidency/Dimitrije GollSerbian President Aleksander Vucic

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic accused on Sunday the ethnic Albanian government in Kosovo of planning to crack down on the local Serb population. He issued a plea for peace in the breakaway province, but added that Belgrade won't stand idly by if ethnic Serbs are targeted for another pogrom.

"The 'regime' in Pristina wants to impose on the people in northern Kosovo-Metohija things they have no right to impose. The atmosphere has been heated up, and the Serbs will not suffer any more atrocities. My plea to everyone is to try to keep the peace at almost any cost. I am asking the Albanians to come to their senses, the Serbs not to fall for provocations, but I am also asking the representatives of powerful and large countries, which have recognized the so-called independence of Kosovo, to pay a little attention to international law and reality on the ground and not to allow their wards to cause conflict."

The Serbian president claimed last month that the registration policy was part of an effort to force remaining Serbs out of Kosovo. He referred to the move as 'a new Storm,' in reference to the Croatian military operation in 1995 that forced most Serbs to flee Croatia.

Serbian Foreign Minister Nikola Selakovic told reporters on Saturday that "the Albanian side in Kosovo and Metohija is literally preparing to raise hell for Serbs."

Kosovo's prime minister Albin Kurti, an ethnic Albanian, has denied that the transition to non-Serbian documents is anything more than applying "law and justice" equally to all citizens.

In a video message, Kurti called his government

"democratic and progressive, which loves, respects and implements the law and constitutionalism, peace and security, for all citizens without distinction and for our entire common country."

He urged everyone to trust his government and not fall for "misinformation" from Belgrade.

Vucic has claimed that "provocations" against Serbs living in Kosovo has jumped 50%.

"We do not want conflicts and we do not want war. We will pray for peace and seek peace, but let me tell you right away: There will be no surrender, and Serbia will win. If they dare to start persecuting, harassing and killing Serbs, Serbia will win."

Vucic also speculated that Pristina is trying to take advantage of the Ukraine crisis by provoking a conflict in which Kurti would be portrayed sympathetically as Kosovo's version of Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, with the Serbs cast in the role of Russia and President Vladimir Putin.

NATO occupied Kosovo in 1999, after a 78-day air war against what was then Yugoslavia. The province declared independence in 2008, with Western support. While the US and most of its allies have recognized it, Serbia, Russia, China and the UN in general have not.

Church bells and air raid sirens went off in parts of Kosovo. Special police have blocked the main administrative crossing at Jarinje. Local Serb residents responded by erecting their own barricades, just as they had in 2011. There were reports, unconfirmed so far, that at least one Serb had suffered a gunshot wound.

Another barricade was erected in Kosovska Mitrovica, on the bridge between the Albanian-dominated south side of the city and the Serb-inhabited north. Local media report that several hundred ethnic Albanians had gathered on the south side, some of them armed.

The sighting raised the specter of the March 2004 pogrom, when some 50,000 Albanians torched dozens of Serb villages, churches and monasteries across the province. The rampage lasted for several days before the NATO peacekeepers responded to stop it.

Authorities in the breakaway Serbian province of Kosovo announced late on Sunday they would postpone the implementation of their ban on Serbian license plates and identification documents until September 1. Postponing the measures was necessary due to "misinformation and misunderstandings" about its nature. The US only asked for implementation of the legislation to be postponed and not canceled.

Amid unconfirmed and often conflicting reports of armed Albanians massing on approaches to Serb-majority towns and gunfire that may or may not have injured civilians, NATO's peacekeeping force in the province, KFOR, announced it was "prepared to intervene if stability is jeopardized."

On Sunday evening, Vucic held talks with the KFOR leadership from the headquarters of the Serbian General Staff. After emerging from the building shortly before midnight, he told reporters he was optimistic about a peaceful resolution.

"What's happening in the Balkans isn't Russia. Whoever says this to you is trying to manipulate you," Grenell tweeted on Sunday evening. "This is about Albin Kurti trying once again to give it [to] Serbia. He is living in the past. The people of Kosovo want peace and jobs, Albin. Stop picking fights."

Describing the PM a "far left radical and experienced fascist," Grenell further called his actions "foolish" and "reckless," and urged Serbian leaders to "not take the bait. Even the Albanians know Kurti is the problem."

He also blamed Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who met with Kurti and Kosovo president Vjosa Osmani earlier in the week. US President Joe Biden has "ignored the Balkans."

Grenell also accused the EU of orchestrating war crimes charges against Kosovo President Hashim Thaci to punish him for working with Trump - resulting in Kurti and Osmani taking power.

During the Trump presidency, Grenell was US ambassador to Germany, a special envoy for Kosovo, and acting Director of National Intelligence (February-May 2020).

Kosovar authorities have begun issuing documents to Serbs entering the country after agreeing to delay implementation of two regulations regarding vehicle license plates and travel papers for visitors from Serbia after consultations with U.S. and European Union representatives. Under the agreement, reached in the early hours of August 1, there will be a delay of 30 days in the new regulations.

Journalists confirmed that in Rudare, a town near the Jarinje border crossing, the removal of vehicles that had been placed as barricades on the roads in the north of Kosovo has begun. However, two border crossings in the north, Jarinje and Brnjak, remain closed for traffic because, according to Prime Minister Albin Kurti, "the roads leading there are still blocked." He added that there had been a total of nine barricades erected and clearing them will take time.

U.S. Ambassador to Pristina Jeffrey Hovenier said:

"We hope that we will work with this government and colleagues from the European Union to ensure that these agreements are better understood and thus lower tensions."

The NATO-led mission in Kosovo also said on July 31 that it was monitoring the "tense" situation in the northern municipalities and that it was "prepared to intervene if stability is jeopardized."