But affiliates are still going strong.
[VOA] Key U.S. officials are not backing down from their assessment that core al-Qaeda, while still a threat, is in decline, brushing aside intelligence suggesting the terror organization remains entrenched in Afghanistan and may be growing stronger. For months, tensions have been growing between the United States and its allies over the status of al-Qaeda, with some counterterrorism officials arguing Washington is in danger of underestimating the threat posed by the terror group.
But the State Department’s top counterterrorism official on Tuesday said al-Qaeda has been significantly degraded as a result of U.S. efforts.