Iraq needs help fighting against a growing and serious threat — al Qaeda. The terror group”s manpower has increased in recent years and it has gained control of more territory in North Africa and the Middle East. The revelation was made by top US lawmakers privy to high-level intelligence and experts who have observed al Qaeda”s activities since September 11. According to CNN, al Qaeda suffered significant setbacks after Navy SEALs killed Osama bin Laden in Pakistan in 2011, but it has rebounded in Yemen, the Sinai region of Egypt, Libya, Iraq, and parts of east and west Africa, among other places. Seth Jones, an analyst at Rand Corp, said that there are multiple indications that al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula is plotting attacks both within Yemen, against U.S. and Western structures and overseas. Al Qaeda in Yemen ”are still capable of conducting attacks” and particularly adept at ”taking down aircraft”, Jones said. The United States has been fighting back, but not every strike has been successful. Al Qaeda-linked militants have established a formidable foothold in the complicated civil war in Syria. (ANI)
