In this image from video released by the CIA on Nov. 1, 2017, Hamza bin Laden is shown at his wedding.

Osama bin Laden's son Hamza bin Laden, who was viewed as an eventual heir to the leadership of Al Qaeda, was killed in a United States counterterrorism operation in the Afghanistan/Pakistan region, President Donald Trump confirmed on Saturday.

His death not only deprives al Qaeda "of important leadership skills and the symbolic connection to his father, but undermines important operational activities of the group," the White House said in a statement.

"Hamza bin Ladin was responsible for planning and dealing with various terrorist groups," it said.

U.S. officials learned that Hamza was dead in July. He was killed sometime during the first two years of Trump's presidency, but details on the strike are still unclear.

Hamza's last known public statement was released by al Qaeda's media outlet in 2018. In that statement, he threatened Saudi Arabia and called on the people of the Arabian Peninsula to revolt.

Hamza's father went to Afghanistan in 1996 and declared war against the U.S. Osama bin Laden oversaw operations that led to the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on New York's World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

Navy SEALS killed Osama bin Laden in 2011 during a raid on his compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan. Hamza was not found at the compound at the time.

Trump's confirmation that Hamza was killed in a U.S. operation comes just three days after the 18th anniversary of the attacks.

In February, the State Department said it would pay as much as $1 million for information leading to his whereabouts.

The department's Counter-Terrorism Rewards Program described him on Twitter as "an emerging al-Qa'ida leader" who "has threatened attacks against the United States and allies."