Al-Qaeda lost "momentum" to ISIL in 2014 - State Department

WASHINGTON, June 19 (KUNA) - The threat posed by Al-Qaeda (AQ) diminished in 2014 as a result of ISIL's rapid expansion and AQ's leadership losses in Pakistan and Afghanistan, indicated the State Department's Country Report on Terrorism 2014, released on Friday.
"Though AQ central leadership was weakened, the organization continued to serve as a focal point of 'inspiration' for a worldwide network of affiliated groups," said the report. "The rate of foreign terrorist fighter travel to Syria - totaling more than 16,000 foreign terrorist fighters from more than 90 countries as of late December - exceeded the rate of foreign terrorist fighters who traveled to Afghanistan and Pakistan, Iraq, Yemen, or Somalia at any point in the last 20 years." ISIL's use of social media to disseminate broad messages enabled it to attract individuals with diverse socioeconomic and geographical backgrounds, the report noted. This includes the rise of "lone offender attacks" that the report pinned to be "adherents of ISIL and AQ." "These attacks may presage a new era in which centralized leadership of a terrorist organization matters less; group identity is more fluid; and violent extremist narratives focus on a wider range of alleged grievances and enemies with which lone actors may identify and seek to carry out self-directed attacks," it affirmed.
The figures in 388 page report indicated that about 33,000 people were killed in almost 13,500 terrorist attacks around the world. This is an increase from over 18,000 deaths in 10,000 attacks in 2013. A 35 percent spike in global attacks. There were 20 attacks in 2014 that killed over 100 people, according to figures compiled by the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism at the University of Maryland.
Although attacks occurred in 95 countries they were concentrated in the Middle East, South Asia and west Africa. Specifically, Iraq, Pakistan, Afghanistan, India, and Nigeria where over 60 percent of the attacks.
"While countries worldwide worked to enact legislation and developed implemented programs to address violent extremism, we remain concerned about counterproductive actions some governments have taken in the name of addressing terrorism," affirmed the State Department.
It highlighted that Iran continued to sponsor terrorist groups around the world including Hizballah, Iraqi Shia militant, Hamas, and Palestine Islamic Jihad, who pose a threat to "the United States and its allies." "Multilateral and regional institutions can provide the appropriate framework to address these challenges," the report asserted. (end) ak.ajs