Al-Qaeda remained the "greatest terrorist threat" to the West as it uses Pakistan bases to rebuild some of the capabilities it had before September 11, 2001, the US government said Thursday.
In an annual report on terrorism, the State Department said "Al-Qaeda remained the greatest terrorist threat to the United States and its partners" even though its structures have weakened and public support has waned.
And it warned that Al-Qaeda "has reconstituted some of its pre-9/11 operational capabilities" by using the Pakistan border areas, replacing key leaders, and restoring some "central control" by its top leadership.
The report said that since the September 11 attacks, Al-Qaeda (AQ) and its allies have moved from Afghanistan into Pakistan where they have built "a safe haven to hide, train terrorists, communicate with followers, plot attacks, and send fighters to support the insurgency in Afghanistan."
It said Pakistan's border region now "provided AQ many of the benefits it once derived from its base across the border in Afghanistan."
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