NPR: Al-Qaida Regrouping Along Pakistani Border

Al-Qaida Regrouping Along Pakistani Border

All too often, al-Qaida reminds me of that old Timex watch commercial: It takes a licking, but keeps on ticking.

The leaders of the terrorist organization have been forced to retreat into the mountainous regions of the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan. But despite the harsh conditions in the area, senior U.S. military, intelligence and law enforcement officials say al-Qaida is "recruiting, regrouping and rebuilding," McClatchy reports. The "new sanctuary" along the border was made possible by last September's cease-fire agreement between the Pakistani government and pro-Taliban tribes in the province of Waziristan.

The threat from Islamic radicals there is more dangerous than from Iraq, according to intelligence officials.

The remote Pakistani region "is the real heart of the war on terror, and we're losing," said a U.S. intelligence official who, like most of his colleagues, requested anonymity because intelligence reports on the matter are highly classified and because their pessimism conflicts with the administration's public statements. "We took our eye off the ball when we went into Iraq."

TPMmuckraker has posted video showing retired Maj. Gen. John Batiste, a former division commander in Iraq who has become a critic of the war, warning the House Committee on Foreign Affairs this week about the dangers of focusing too much on al-Qaida in Iraq to the exclusion of other parts of the world. "I also believe we cannot attribute all the violence in Iraq to al-Qaida. There's a tendency now to lump it all together, and call it al-Qaida. We have to be very careful with that. ... Al-Qaida is a worldwide organization. It recognizes no national boundaries. And it's in areas where we ought to be focused," he said.

9:08 AM ET | 06-29-2007 | permalink

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