A top Israeli officer said Wednesday that one of six senior al-Qaeda leaders is actively recruiting men from neighboring countries for the network. According to the Israeli sources, this recruiter has recently visited Jordan, Syria and Lebanon in an effort to win new recruits for Osama bin Laden's network.
Al-Qaeda's core group, the Israeli official said, continues to operate on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, but orders are sent out from there to points throughout the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia, Yemen and Lebanon, Haaretz reported.
Al-Qaeda also recently started to operate cells in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli intelligence has indicated. These cells are comprised of Palestinians from Gaza. Most of them were previously affiliated with the Islamic Jihad, but some may have been associated with Fatah's "popular committees."
The Israeli officer said these cells receive orders from sources in Lebanon. Their members have apparently already been involved in shooting attacks in the Gaza Strip and are thought to be drawing up plans for larger-scale attacks. (Albawaba.com)
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