Al-Qaeda Faces Recruitment Crisis, Flagging Morale, Report Says

Under pressure at its remote strongholds in Pakistan, al-Qaeda is having difficulty landing new recruits and carrying out high-profile attacks in Western countries, according to the British government and experts who monitor the terrorist group. A group of experts tells the U.K.'s Guardian that, hampered by low popular support and limited successes, al-Qaeda is facing a "crisis" that keeps it from adding to its ranks. It increasingly delegates activity to "affiliates" in Yemen and North Africa because its local groups are unreliable.

"Lethal strikes by CIA drones -- including two this week alone -- have combined with the monitoring and disruption of electronic communications, suspicion and low morale to take their toll on al-Qaeda's Pakistani 'core,' " the Guardian reported Friday. The paper also noted that intelligence documents indicate European Muslim recruits are facing "chaotic reception, a low level of training, poor conditions and eventual disillusionment" with the terrorist group within a short time of their arrival for duty.

Al-Qaeda's "core" -- intelligence-speak for senior leadership -- is believed to have been reduced to about six to eight men, including Osama bin Laden. More encouraging for Western intelligence officials, their relationship with the Taliban in Afghanistan seems to be fraying, increasing the likelihood that top al-Qaeda officials can be tracked down.

Al-Qaida Faces Recruitment Crisis, Anti-Terrorism Experts Say [Guardian]