As the peril of Islamic militancy spreads like a jungle fire in almost every nook and corner of Pakistan, the Al Qaeda network keeps thriving by evolving a modus operandi which exploits its local affiliates -- the Pakistani militant groups active in Jammu Kashmir and Afghanistan -- to pursue their global jehadi agenda, says Amir Mir.
"In the key countries of Pakistan and Afghanistan, the group is under serious pressure," Robert F Godec, Principal Deputy Co-coordinator for Terrorism in the State Department said. There us "growing resolve" in both Afghanistan and Pakistan to "defeat" Al-Qaeda, he added.
Besides Germany, The UK's Scotland Yard and French Surete are also on full alert for possible Al Qaeda strikes in London and Paris. The German magazine Der Spiegel had reported on the weekend, that a group of Al Qaeda terrorists trained in Pakistani camps and assisted by underworld don Dawood Ibrahim are planning to storm Germany's Parliament in a Mumbai-style attack.
Mohammad Naeen Noor Khan was being used by Pakistan in a sting operation against the Al Qaeda.
They had been air-dropped in areas held by Al Qaeda militants in the south Waziristan tribal region bordering Afghanistan.
The Kerala police is probing alleged links of radical PFI, blamed for the attack on a college lecturer, with terror outfits Hizbul Mujahideen, Lashkar-e-Taiba and Al Qaeda, but not found any evidence so far, the state government informed the High Court on Monday.
Armaments seized included explosive belts used by suicide bombers, assault rifles, ammunition, computers, pre-paid mobile SIM cards and documents, the interior ministry said.
The police has scheduled a press conference later in the day to give more details about the plot as security experts warned that the plotters could have been planning to blow up hydroelectric plants and transmission lines to hit the US. "There are ways of attacking the US through Canada. The whole energy for New York comes from Quebec," they said
Resolve Palestinian issue to defeat Al Qaeda: Musharraf
A senior member of Islamic militant group told U.S. authorities that the group had drawn up a plan to launch attacks in Japan during the 2002 event.
They could try to disrupt Republic Day celebrations or target Advani and some other leaders, Special Commissioner of Delhi police (Security) S K Kain said.
The United States on Thursday said that the Lashkar-e-Tayiba was as dangerous as Taliban and Al-Qaeda with which it was working in close coordination and that Pakistan has been asked to deny it a foothold in that country.
The 27-year-old German national, later identified as Rami Mackenzie, was allegedly an expert in making suicide vests and was wanted by German authorities for links with extremists. He was clad in a burqa which covered his face at the time of the arrest.
The plot to blow up a Northwest Airlines flight over American soil on Christmas Day demonstrates a new and lethal ability by a branch of the Al Qaeda to attack the United States directly, the New York Times quotes both government and independent counter-terrorism specialists, as saying.
"As we approach our 10th year of combat in Afghanistan, there are those who are understandably asking tough questions about our mission there. But we must never lose sight of what's at stake," Obama said in his address to the nation to announce the end of combat mission in Iraq.
US President Barack Obama has vowed to defeat the Al Qaeda terrorist network and hit them anywhere in the world from where they are plotting attack against the US.
Four leading hotels in Coimbatore have received e-mails in the name of Al Qaeda threatening to bomb them and demanding huge sums as protection money. The police suspect this to be the handiwork a Nigerian gang.
"We should not underestimate the Taliban and Al-Qaeda nor fight terrorism with any less military and political determination than in the immediate post-2001 days after terrorist attacks on the United States," India's UN Ambassador Nirupam Sen told the Security Council on Wednesday.
"It requires recognition that we will not just solve these problems militarily, but we're also going to have to be much more effective diplomatically; we're going to have to be much more effective on the development front," he said.
Al Qaeda remains "very capable" and focused on attacking the United States, a top American military official said on Sunday, adding the situation in Afghanistan is "serious" and "deteriorating" as the militants have found a "safe haven in Pakistan."
Investigators probing the terror module busted in Karnataka have claimed that the arrested 11 youths were inspired by the contents of an online magazine which glorifies activities of the Al Qaeda in Afghanistan.
The Pakistan Army, however, asserted that only 'three to four' of its personnel were being held for alleged links with extremist groups.
A year after Osama bin Laden was killed by United States Special Forces in Pakistan, his terrorist outfit Al Qaeda has little support in the Muslim world, a poll has said.
Adm Michael Mullen, chairman of the US joint chiefs of staff, said despite the scale of threat, progress would be slow since Pakistan has been lagging behind in its strategy to eliminate safe havens for terrorists in the lawless Federally Administered Tribal Areas
The purported video of Yemen's Al-Qaeda branch claiming responsibility for last week's attack at a French satirical newspaper is authentic, the United States has said.
'The shift of militants to Afghanistan this year suggests that Al Qaeda and its allies, armed with new tactics honed in Iraq, are coming full circle five years after US-led forces ousted the Taliban mullahs,' says the Los Angeles Times.
"An attempt has been made to create a scare among the people. If it merits response, it will be there," Gupta said.
Former Pakistan premier Benazir Bhutto said she does not blame the government for the terrorist attack on her homecoming parade in Karachi.
Al Qaeda and its followers, the New York Times says, have used the Internet to communicate and rally support for years, but in the past several months the Western tilt of the message and the sophistication of the media have accelerated.
The top CIA official is said to have presented Musharraf 'compelling' evidence of Al Qaeda's resurgence in Pakistan, US officials were quoted as saying.
'India is a major target for ISIS and Al Qaeda because it has a very large Muslim Diaspora, regular conflicts with a Muslim country and experiences violent clashes between Hindus and Muslims on a regular basis.' 'This provides for a very stable breeding ground for jihadist radicalisation and recruitment.'
Security forces launched a cordon and search operation in Arampora village in Awantipora area of the south Kashmir district this morning following specific intelligence about the presence of terrorists there, a police official said.
Al Qaeda's second-in-command Abu Yahya al-Libi has died in a US drone strike, the White House has confirmed, with a top Obama aide terming it as a major blow to the terrorist outfit.
At least four persons, including an alleged Al Qaeda militant, were killed on Saturday when a United States drone struck in the lawless North Waziristan region after a lull in the Central Investigation Agency's spy plane campaign in Pakistan.
They figure on a secret list drawn up by Britain's domestic intelligence service MI5 in the aftermath of 7/7 terror attacks in London.
There is an air of nervousness all over the world where there is a strong United States presence regarding the dangers of Al Qaeda-inspired attacks on US nationals and interests coinciding with the first anniversary of the killing of Osama bin Laden by US Navy Seals during a clandestine raid into his hide-out in Abbottabad in Pakistan on May 2 of last year, says security expert B Raman
A plot by Islamist militants to blow up the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre art museum and a nuclear power plant has been foiled, the French police said.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances