Al-Qaeda 'decimated' in 5 years
12/09/2006 10:32  - (SA)  

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Washington - Al-Qaeda's core leadership has been decimated and more than 5 000 "terrorists" have been captured or killed in the five years since the September 11 attacks on the United States, the director of the CIA said on Monday.

General Michael Hayden's assessment came the same day that al-Qaeda's number two leader Zayman Al-Zawahiri released a video tape threatening attacks against western interests in the Gulf and Israel.

"In five years, more than 5 000 terrorists have been captured or killed," Hayden told employees of the CIA.

"Al-Qaeda's core operational leadership has been decimated, and their successors are in hiding or on the run."

9/11 'an unforgettable blow'

Hayden acknowledged that the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon were "an unforgettable blow" that the intelligence agency had been unable to prevent.

But he said the CIA had worked closely with other foreign intelligence agencies to break up cells of al-Qaeda operatives, associates and sympathisers around the world.

"Although the enemy, intelligent and resilient, has managed to launch attacks in Europe, Asia, and Africa, many potential catastrophes have been averted," he said.

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