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April 4th, 2012 
FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda Osama bin Laden’s brother-in-law, Zakaria al-Sadah, spoke to NBC News in Islamabad in his first interview with an American television network. He said he is concerned for his sister, who was shot in the raid that killed the al-Qaida leader, and frustrated she and her children have been in custody ever since. NBC’s Amna Nawaz reports.
The war against al-Qaida is at a “critical moment” as the “much weaker” terrorist group looks to regroup in Africa, according to the author of a new report.
Valentina Soria, a counterterrorism research analyst and U.K. think-tank RUSI, told msnbc.com by telephone that the network had been damaged by the death of Osama bin Laden and other leading figures.
Her report, titled “Global Jihad Sustained Through Africa,” which was published at 7 p.m. ET Tuesday, said al-Qaida’s leadership was looking for partnerships with like-minded organizations in parts of Africa – such as al-Shabab and al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb — to “regroup and re-energize itself.”
West ‘unsighted’ by shift
Soria told msnbc.com that the war on terror was at a key point, as while al-Qaida was weaker, Western counterterrorism officials had been “unsighted” by the apparent shift to Africa.
“I think it’s certainly an important junction, a critical moment because obviously counterterrorism operations in Afghanistan and Pakistan … and Yemen have been quite successful in decapitating the organization [al-Qaida], a lot of important figures have been removed,” Soria said.
“There is no doubt the organization is much weaker than it was a few years ago,” she added.
The report said that “despite greater co-operation, there seems to be an unresolved tension between transnational aims of al-Qaida-core and the local grievances of African partners.”
At an international one-day summit Britain’s Prime Minister David Cameron said the world would “pay a price” if it fails to help Somalia overcome terrorism, piracy and starvation. ITV’s Lee Comley reports.
It added it was unclear whether al-Qaida was making a “conscious effort” to regroup in the Horn of Africa and sub-Saharan Africa or if this was the result of “displacement” and cooperation on an “ad hoc basis.”
American hostage in Somalia rescued by US Navy SEALs
Islamist militant group al-Shabab, which operates in Somalia, has merged with al-Qaida’s core group, a move “officially endorsed” by al-Qaida’s leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in February of this year.
‘Arc of regional instability’
The report noted that U.S. counterterrorism officials had been voicing concern about the prospect of al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, which is based in Algeria, using local instability and weak or absent government to expand its zone of influence.
“If correct, this assessment would raise the worrying prospect of an arc of regional instability encompassing the whole Sahara-Sahel strip and extending to east Africa, which the now weakened al-Qaida-core could well exploit to regroup, reorganize and reinvigorate its terrorist campaign in the West,” the report said.
UN: Ancient treasures of Timbuktu under threat in Mali unrest
In Mali, south of Algeria, Tuareg rebels on Sunday seized the ancient city of Timbuktu, following a coup that overthrew Mali’s government last month.
“[Al-Qaida] appears to be adopting a strategy of ‘going native,’ which implies seizing upon and exploiting local grievances with the ultimate aim of securing a stable foothold in volatile countries,” the report said.
Al Qaida’s leader announces his terror group is holding a 70-year-old American aid worker hostage in Pakistan. NBC’s Richard Engel reports.
The report said that counterterrorism officials “privately acknowledge that they are unsighted” and are “working hard to understand how far the jihadist challenge may be migrating” to Somalia, Kenya, north Nigeria and parts of West Africa.
“From West to East Africa, across the Sub-Saharan region, we may well be witnessing a new phase of decisive developments that could trigger further turmoil,” the report said.
More from msnbc.com and NBC News:
- Officer: Iran could hit US if it came under attack
- ‘Cute-and-cuddly’ primates from Indonesia sold illegally as pets
- Report: Assad’s uncle says Syria leader is finished
- Crazy gas prices driving German consumers mad
Follow us on Twitter: @msnbc_world
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