<

U.S. Officials Worried al-Qaida Could Reconstitute Itself in Somalia
Friday, January 4, 2002
The Associated Press

Washington
U.S. reconnaissance flights are increasing over Somalia.

Officials say they're looking for signs that Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida (al-KY'-ee-duh) network may be regrouping there.

Al-Qaida has ties to a larger, native Islamic fundamentalist movement that's fighting to set up an Islamic state in the African nation.

The State Department says the administration is concerned Somalia could become a haven for terrorists.

The flights are searching for terrorist camps and any other signs of terrorist activity. Officials say senior al-Qaida leaders are not believed to be in Somalia, but they've said it's a likely destination for bin Laden should he flee Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Al-Qaida has claimed credit for 1993 attacks in Mogadishu that left 18 U.S. servicemen dead.
(More: ABC28 News Source)
2002 © The Associated Press.

Dan