The assessment of Al-Qaeda`s efforts in Libya came in response to a report by CNN television that experienced militants from the network -- including a former British terror suspect -- had been dispatched to the country and had managed to mobilize fighters.
US officials confirmed that Al-Qaeda had sent some members to Libya and was pushing its north African branch, Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), to promote Islamist extremism, but the practical effect remained unclear.
"Al-Qaeda has sent some operatives, and is encouraging local affiliates -- namely AQIM -- to infiltrate Libya in an attempt to drum up extremist activities," one American official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told AFP.
But the official said Al-Qaeda was badly damaged by a decade-long US campaign and that the extremist network found itself marginalized by a wave of popular uprisings in Libya and across the Arab world.
"When it comes to the overthrow of Kadhafi, and the Arab Spring in general, Al-Qaeda is arriving late to the game," the official said in an email.
"It shouldn`t be a surprise that an organization so close to strategic defeat would seek opportunities to rehabilitate its image and be relevant again.
"But this is a threat we are well aware of and are working with Libyan authorities to counter."
According to CNN, Al-Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri personally ordered a seasoned operative -- a former British detainee -- to Libya, the television news channel reported citing a Libyan source briefed by Western officials.
The operative, who arrived in Libya in May, has allegedly recruited some 200 fighters in the country`s east and Western intelligence agencies are tracking his efforts, CNN said.
Another operative, with European and Libyan passports, was arrested en route to Libya from the Afghanistan-Pakistan region in "an unnamed country," according to CNN.
US officials, however, could not confirm Zawahiri`s role or the estimated number of fighters recruited.
Following the collapse of Kadhafi`s regime in the face of an armed rebellion and a NATO-led air campaign, Western governments have voiced concern about extremists trying to exploit instability in the country or getting their hands on surface-to-air missiles.
A second US official said there was no sign Al-Qaeda was making headway in Libya.
"It is way too early for people to suggest that Al-Qaeda is going to establish a firm foothold in Libya," said the US official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
"It is entirely conceivable they would reject out of hand any attempt by Al-Qaeda or other extremist groups to shape their future."
A US diplomatic cable from 2008 published earlier this year by the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks portrayed the eastern Libyan town of Derna as a bastion for extremists.
The ranks of Al-Qaeda in Iraq had large numbers of Libyan volunteers from the eastern area, according to documents found in Iraq.
AFP
Editor: Jafar M Sidik
Copyright © ANTARA 2011
