Al QaedaÂ’s command base in PakistanÂ’s tribal areas is being increasingly funded by cash coming from the organisationÂ’s affiliate in Iraq, the Los Angeles Times reported on its website on Saturday. Citing unnamed senior US intelligence officials, the newspaper said there had been a significant increase in the movement of Al Qaeda operatives and money from Iraq to Pakistan.
Al Qaeda operatives in Iraq are raising substantial sums from donations to the insurgency as well as kidnappings of wealthy Iraqis and other criminal activity, according to the paper. Little more than a year ago, Al QaedaÂ’s core command was thought to be in a financial crunch. But US officials said cash shipped from Iraq has eased those troubles. The report also said a major hunt for Al Qaeda chief Osama Bin Laden launched by the CIA last year has produced no significant leads on his whereabouts. The CIA deployed 50 clandestine operatives to Pakistan and Afghanistan for the search, the paper said. |