The Patriot Files Forums  

Go Back   The Patriot Files Forums > International > Terrorism

Post New Thread  Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old 01-04-2010, 03:17 PM
darrels joy's Avatar
darrels joy darrels joy is offline
Senior Member
 

Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Indian Springs
Posts: 5,964
Distinctions
Contributor 
Post Mobility Helps al Qaeda Extend Reach

Mobility Helps al Qaeda Extend Reach

By , MATTHEW ROSENBERG and MARGARET COKER

Al Qaeda's decentralized structure across the Middle East is proving one of its biggest advantages over American firepower.

U.S. and allied-government officials have claimed significant progress against al Qaeda in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq recently. But the group appears able to nimbly deploy forces to places where international military pressure isn't as concentrated or has eased, including most recently Yemen and Somalia, according to officials and analysts.

Arab intelligence officers say they have tracked foreign fighters allied with al Qaeda traveling from one Mideast battlefield to another -- in particular from Iraq to Yemen, and, over the summer, from Pakistan to Yemen.


Agence France-Presse/Getty Images

Al Qaeda fighters have been able to move across the Middle East and beyond, despite a lack of centralized control from Osama bin Laden


High-profile plots -- like the Christmas Day attempted plane bombing in the U.S., linked by U.S. officials to al Qaeda's affiliate in Yemen -- can also boost regionwide recruitment efforts for local chapters, without much help from affiliates or from al Qaeda's global leadership.

The global network "moves to the weakest point," says Mustafa Alani, director of security and terrorism studies at the Dubai-based Gulf Research Center, a think tank. "In Yemen, they have found opportunity."

After almost a decade of concerted U.S. and allied offensives, al Qaeda's affiliate groups work with a high degree of autonomy. The global group's top leadership, Osama bin Laden, and his lieutenant, Ayman al-Zawahiri, are both believed by U.S. officials to be in Pakistan.

Following Mr. bin Laden's expulsion from Sudan in 1996, al Qaeda found a well-established jihadi infrastructure in Pakistan and Afghanistan. The group never inspired an official affiliate, instead forming what U.S. officials and experts describe as "symbiotic" relationships with already established Islamist militant groups.

But al Qaeda's ability to operate in Pakistan and Afghanistan has been tightly curtailed over the past year or two. Senior military and civilian officials familiar with Afghanistan and Pakistan operations, speaking before the Christmas attack, said the pressure on al Qaeda in Pakistan and Afghanistan had prompted some operatives to shift to Yemen and Somalia.

The U.S. and allies in Pakistan and Afghanistan may have also killed operatives who provided key links to affiliated groups, forcing local cells to boost their own autonomy. One casualty in Pakistan was Abu Laith al-Libi, a senior commander slain in a January 2008 missile strike. U.S. officials believe he oversaw operations in parts of Africa.

As it was battling U.S. and allied forces elsewhere, including Iraq, al Qaeda branched out to northern Africa, effectively opening a new franchise in 2006. Mr. al-Zawahiri permitted a militant Algerian group to take the name al Qaeda in the Maghreb. It has claimed responsibility for suicide bombings in Algeria and for abducting foreigners in Mali and Mauritania.

In Somalia, al Qaeda is suspected of sending fighters to buttress the Islamist group al Shabaab, which is battling the U.S.-backed government.

The government is staying afloat with the protection of African Union peacekeeping troops stationed in Mogadishu, the capital.

At least 47 people were killed in weekend fighting between al Shabaab and a moderate pro-government Muslim group in Dusamareb, 350 miles north of Mogadishu, Reuters news agency reported.

For the past year, foreign fighters linked to al Qaeda have been arriving in Somalia to support al Shabaab, according to Western and Somali officials. Since then, attacks by Somali militants have grown more sophisticated and deadly. Over the weekend, al Shabaab's leadership said it was ready to send fighters to Yemen to counter any U.S. military attack there.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1262...cle-outset-box
__________________

sendpm.gif Reply With Quote
Sponsored Links
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is On

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Despite Al Qaeda Threat, U.S. Not Planning to Extend Terror Fight in Yemen darrels joy Political Debate 0 01-03-2010 10:04 AM
US, Kyrgyzstan reach deal on air base use David Enduring Freedom 0 06-23-2009 07:31 PM
House Votes To Extend Patriot Act David Homeland Security 3 10-17-2006 09:20 PM
Air Mobility Rodeo BLUEHAWK Airforce 2 07-07-2005 01:10 AM
Marines, Sailors reach for the top... thedrifter Marines 0 07-11-2003 04:57 AM

All times are GMT -7. The time now is 12:20 PM.


Powered by vBulletin, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.