Concerns rise over potential return of al-Qaeda to Afghanistan

KABUL -- Afghanistan could emerge anew as a global hub for terrorist groups if al-Qaeda reestablishes itself and its safe havens in the troubled country, analysts warn.

An al-Qaeda resurgence in Afghanistan would significantly endanger global security, they add.

Among those voicing alarm is the former chief of Afghanistan's National Directorate of Security, Ahmad Zia Saraj.

Al-Qaeda aims to turn Afghanistan into a hub from which to plan and organize its terrorist attacks on other countries, Saraj cautioned in a May interview published by the Combating Terrorism Center (CTC) at West Point.

"Al-Qaeda are now in a position to make Afghanistan their command and control center," he said, adding that its funding of other militants is an additional cause for concern.

"For the preservation of the leadership of al-Qaeda, they invested in other terrorist groups like ETIM (East Turkestan Islamic Movement), like TTP (Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan), like IMU (Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan)," he said.

Many of these groups operate under al-Qaeda's guidance, he added, pointing out that al-Qaeda has deep roots in the tribal areas of Pakistan and in parts of Afghanistan, and has established a presence in Iran.

"Al-Qaeda has also separately built up a strong relationship with organized crime groups operating in the borders between Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iran," he said.

"There are common areas such as drug trafficking, human trafficking, weapons smuggling, and other types of illegal lucrative business which offers benefit for both parties."

"The threat is growing," Saraj said.

A major global threat

Al-Qaeda has returned to its previous tactics in Afghanistan, Australian journalist Lynne O'Donnell wrote for Foreign Policy magazine in March.

It is once again operating militant training camps and sharing profits from illicit drug production, mining and smuggling, channeling the proceeds of these activities to its affiliates across the globe, she said.

Al-Qaeda has turned Afghanistan into its sanctuary once again, much as it did before the 9/11 attacks on the United States, said Italy-based Afghan military affairs analyst Mohammad Naim Ghayur.

"Over the past almost three years, alongside the strengthening of other terrorist groups in Afghanistan, al-Qaeda has been revived," he said. "If this continues, Afghanistan will once again become a major threat to the world."

"The situation in Afghanistan differs from other countries where al-Qaeda is present," he said. "In countries like Yemen, Somalia, or Libya, there is a risk of foreign air strikes, but currently, there is no such threat to al-Qaeda in Afghanistan."