Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Sunday Morning

Al Qaeda May be Preparing to Strike Again

Aired June 16, 2002 - 10:03   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: There's new information this morning about al Qaeda's activities. CNN has learned they may be regrouping in eastern Afghanistan or western Pakistan, and may want to show that they can still launch terrorist operations.

And our Mike Boettcher reports, U.S. officials believe al Qaeda may be behind the latest bombing in Pakistan.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MIKE BOETTCHER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Relentlessly pursued by coalition forces along the Afghanistan- Pakistan border, al Qaeda has tried to stay out of sight, but not out of business.

Coalition intelligence sources now believe al Qaeda's leadership is regrouping, somewhere in eastern Afghanistan or western Pakistan, and is out to show it can still launch terrorist operations, big and small.

Magnus Ranstorp is a terrorism expert at the Center for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence at Saint Andrew's University.

MAGNUS RANSTORP, UNIVERSITY OF ST. ANDREWS: Al Qaeda pursues a very sophisticated strategy, it's not just about revenge, it is also about engaging with the enemy, not only in massive military response to any terrorist atrocity that it may carry out, but also chipping away, showing that they have a presence, showing that they have a capability.

Creating that fear factor, the factor of uncertainty, what's going to happen next.

BOETTCHER: Before September 11, large numbers of al Qaeda operatives passed through training camps in Afghanistan. Some have been captured or killed. But most remain at large. And according to Rohan Gunaratna, another Saint Andrews University scholar who closely follows al Qaeda, they are at the heart of a worldwide network that still possesses great potential for violence, and one that is getting help. For example, Gunaratna points to an al Qaeda-Lebanese Hezbollah alliance.

ROHAN GUNARATNA, AUTHOR "INSIDE AL QAEDA": It was the training provided by Hezbollah in southern Lebanon to al Qaeda trainers and al Qaeda expert that give al Qaeda the capability to conduct terrorist operations. Especially the art of conducting multiple suicide attacks and in a coordinated fashion.

BOETTCHER (on camera): Coalition intelligence sources and terrorism experts believe that al Qaeda is still capable of pulling off simultaneous, complicated attacks, but in the short term it's more likely to launch small scale operations to demonstrate that they are not yet defeated.

Mike Boettcher, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com