‘Al-Qaeda on brink of collapse’

More than two months after the killing of its leader Osama bin Laden,America’s counter-terrorism officials believe that al-Qaeda is on the brink of collapse.

“US counter-terrorism officials are increasingly convinced that the killing of Osama bin Laden and the toll of seven years of CIA drone strikes have pushed al-Qaeda to the brink of collapse,” The Washington Post reported quoting US officials. “The assessment reflects a widespread view at the CIA and other agencies that a relatively small number of additional blows could effectively extinguish the Pakistan-based organisation that carried out the September 11,2001,terrorist attacks — an outcome that was seen as a distant prospect for much of the past decade,” it said.

According to the daily,US officials said al-Qaeda might yet rally and that even its demise would not end the terrorist threat,which is increasingly driven by radicalised individuals as well as aggressive affiliates. Indeed,officials said that al-Qaeda’s offshoot in Yemen is now seen as a greater counter terrorism challenge than the organisation’s traditional base,it said.