Al-Qaeda still has the ability to "plan and coordinate" attacks in the western world, a British leading think-tank said Wednesday.
"There is increasing evidence ... that 'core' al-Qaeda is proving adaptable and resilient, and has retained the ability to plan and coordinate large-scale attacks in the Western world," said John Chipman, director of the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies, at the launch of strategic affairs report, Strategic Survey 2007.
According to the report, the threat from Islamist terrorism remained as high as ever and looked to get worse.
"A number of regional jihadist groups, notably al-Qaeda in Mesopotamia and al-Qaeda in the Maghreb, have not only sworn formal allegiance to al-Qaeda, but more importantly, have begun to demonstrate ambitions beyond their parochial concerns in support of al-Qaeda's global objectives," said the report.
Plots that have come to light in Europe and elsewhere point to a growing trend towards radicalization within Islamic world, the report said.
The report said that the U.S. and its allies failed to deal a "death-blow" to al-Qaeda, and al-Qaeda's ideology appeared to have taken roots to such a degree that it will require decades to eradicate.
The long-term challenge was to "confront the extremist ideology which gives rise to terrorism and which al-Qaeda has shown great skill and ingenuity in propagating," said Chipman.
"That challenge is of a different kind in different parts of the world and needs to be met in specific contexts," he added.
Source: Xinhua
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