Due to increased US and allied troops and the increasing effectiveness of Iraqi security forces, Al-Qaeda's franchise in Iraq is finding fewer fighters for suicide bombings. -- PHOTO: AP
WASHINGTON - THE number of Al-Qaeda extremists in Iraq has plummeted and their ability to maintain a high-level of attacks has been eroded, US intelligence suggests.
Battered by the surge of US and allied troops into Iraq, and the slowly increasing effectiveness of Iraqi security forces, Al-Qaeda's franchise in the war-worn country is finding fewer foreign fighters to tap for suicide bombings, said US intelligence and counterterrorism officials who have been studying the terror group's activities.
Those changes, officials say, suggest that the terror group is evolving to one more heavily dependent on local militants who are less committed to broader jihadist goals.
The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence reports, said that the number of foreign fighters coming across Iraq's borders had dropped from hundreds to 'tens,' and the membership of Al-Qaeda in Iraq, or AQI, has plunged from thousands at its peak in 2006-2007 to hundreds now.
Intelligence reports indicate that not only has AQI become less effective and less popular, it's become a different operation, said one senior counterterrorism analyst.
During its heyday, Al-Qaeda in Iraq had ties to the terror group's leadership with an eye to expanding beyond Iraq's borders to a broader jihadist effort against the west.
Now, the US official said, AQI is focused on Iraq, struggling to maintain a foothold there as its ties to the central Al-Qaeda leadership weaken. The terror group's leaders, including Osama bin Laden, are now believed to be hiding in safe havens in Pakistan, along the rugged border with Afghanistan.
Intelligence officials said that the US is concerned about the impending transfer of thousands of jailed militants from US to Iraqi control, and whether Al-Qaeda loyalists could be released.
Right now, said one counterterrorism official, intelligence reports and internal communications suggest that Al-Qaeda is suffering from a lack of volunteers, but that could change if some of those prisoners make their way back into the Al-Qaeda fold. -- AP
