Al-Qaida Tops Suspect List

THE GLOBAL INTELLIGENCE COM
11 September 2001

Osama bin Laden's organization , Al Qaida, is the prime suspect in the spate of attacks against the United States. Based in Afghanistan, the group has been linked to a series of attacks on U.S. assets around the world and has repeatedly threatened to strike the United States within its own borders. An umbrella organization with an operational reach that stretches around the globe, Al-Qaida has been extremely successful at maintaining a high level of security and secrecy. Despite the intelligence efforts of several world powers, bin Laden's organization has continued to support or facilitate acts of international terrorism. No nation has successfully penetrated the organization. This is partly due to the fact that Al-Qaida operates as an umbrella group supporting a host of cells around the world. The organization develops autonomous cells capable of operating individually without a central command. Additionally, Al-Qaida coordinates operations and activities with various other militant organizations around the world. The hierarchy of the relationships remains unknown.

Bin Laden himsef has repeatedly threatened acts of terrorism against the United States, and Al-Qaida was pinpointed in the attacks on the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998. Bin Laden, a Saudi, has operated from Afghanistan for several years. The Taliban, a radical Muslim authority that rules most of Afghanistan, has denied responsibility for the attacks on New York City and Washington, D.C.

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