Osama bin Laden (archive photo)
Photo: Reuters
Al-Qaeda still in 1st grade - terror expert
Israeli conference on global jihad calls for international unity to prevent strengthening of al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda is still in its first stages of developments, but an unprecedented international effort is needed to prevent it from developing more lethal capabilities, a terrorism expert told an Israeli conference on al-Qaeda held in Tel Aviv on Monday.
The Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) called a number of leading experts and analysts to discuss the state of the threat posed by al-Qaeda.
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Former IDF Intelligence Head, Major General (Res.) Aharon Zeevi Farkash said “the highest efforts and abilities of intelligence agencies from leading countries must be drafted now," and called for "close and unusual international cooperation, in order to provide an optimal response to the complex challenge posed by al-Qaeda and its associates".
"This must be done at the current stage already, when these organizations are still in 'first grade' in terms of their development, before they develop much improved capabilities," he added.
"There is a strategic decision by the global jihad to evict the Americans from Iraq in order to set up the caliphate there," Farkash said.
'Open university of the global jihad'
Yoram Schweitzer, a researcher at the INSS, said that "the failure of al-Qaeda and its associates to realize their stated goals of using unconventional weapons, or carrying out another mega attack in the US, or to topple Arab regimes, expresses the limits of their power and the success of preventative efforts by local security agents, as well as the international cooperation to stop these goals."
He warned, however, of complacency, saying that concepts of time and patience were fundamental values held by al-Qaeda members who equipped the organization's members with determination and belief.
Addressing the future threat, Schweitzer said jihadi "veterans" from Iraq could use their experience to carry out future attacks.
Reuven Paz, Director of the "Project for the Research of Islamist Movements," addressed the use of the internet by jihadis, described the web as "the open university of the global jihad, and the main recruitment means for future generations."
He added that computers and keyboards have equaled, and even surpass the importance of the Kalashinokov in the modern era.
