“Your mission is to find, fix, and finish off high-value targets of the AQ network in Verdansk… They all serve one new master, who’s leading the Al-Qatala charge in Verdansk. To find him, we need to find them.” Kate Laswell, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare

Veterans of the franchise know his signature red beret, but none know who he is within the Modern Warfare universe until today. After the events of the Campaign, he became one of the two main antagonists that continues to wreak havoc on Verdansk and the world.

This major Intel Drop reveals the backstory, plans, and machinations of this major player ofModern Warfare:

Khaled Al-Asad

Khaled Al-Asad is considered the founder and current leader of the new Al-Qatala. Emerging shortly after the KIA death of Omar Sulaman, known to the world by his moniker “The Wolf,” Asad seized command authority over the extremist group. Asad’s efforts are further fortified by an unholy alliance with Victor Zakhaev, an ultranationalist Russian arms dealer with tremendous resources and a Cold War pedigree enthroned by his father Imran. Asad has an avowed hatred for Russia and no abiding allegiance to Zakhaev, but the two share a unanimous aim toward the demise of Western power and influence. 

Intelligence analysts have determined that Asad was unlawfully freed from prison by Zakhaev and turned loose on the city of Verdansk for the express purpose of pointing Asad’s unyielding and zealous hatred into an invasion of the historical city. 

Using Zakhaev’s armaments Asad launched a brutal and merciless campaign of violence resulting in countless deaths and ultimately the mass evacuation of the city’s civilian occupants. Following the attacks, Asad received pledges of support from AQ cells worldwide, intended to illustrate the legitimacy and unanimous acceptance of the self-appointed commander, countering criticism that he was unknown, reckless, and illegitimate.

In the months since the raid that killed his predecessor, a fuller picture of Asad has been pieced together by regional and western spies, placing him at the centre of Al-Qatala decision-making. The intelligence portrays him as a hardened veteran, born to lead the terrorist army and garnering unflinching loyalty to and from the radical militia, uniting the once frayed organization that had been reduced to scattered sleeper cells and splinter groups. Although the anarchistic terror organization’s power and ability to conduct strikes in the West has diminished under the pressure of successful strikes and counter-terror activities by joint military and C.I.A. operations, Asad reigns supreme over what is now one of the world’s most potent insurgent forces.

To this day, little is known about Al-Asad, which means “the lion” in Arabic, but it is suggested that he claims a lineage to the embattled country of Urzikstan, a distinction that offers legitimacy in some quarters. The name is believed to be a nom de guerre and his real birth name is unverifiable.

AQ has not released any video or speeches confirmed to be from Al-Asad but there is at least one picture that shows his full figure and face, donning a military officer’s uniform replete with an assemblage of ribbons and medals. In the photo, Asad wears a beret and mirrored sunglasses offering few distinctive physical features. Nonetheless, in November 2019, Western coalition forces claimed they had identified the existence of Al-Asad through surveillance assets, however other reports indicate that senior officials do not have positive ID on Asad or his current whereabouts.

Get more intel on the complete story of Modern Warfare here and experience it all by playing the Campaign, continuing the narrative in Special Operations, and joining with the armistice in battle in Multiplayer and Warzone.

We’ll see you online.  

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