The al Qaeda terror group's chief bomb maker has published a blueprint for new attacks on U.S. transportation systems, including planes, trains, and boats, which the terror group views as "prime targets," according to a copy of a lengthy manifesto that provides a guide for would-be terrorists to launch attacks.
Ibrahim al-Asiri, a top al Qaeda leader known as the terror group's chief bomb maker, detailed the extremist organization's plans to target U.S. passenger and shipping transportation services, which the terror organization views as weak links ripe for attack.
While al Qaeda's operations have been weakened by years of U.S. attacks on its key locations and apparatus, it has increasingly relied on promulgating its radical ideology to so-called "lone wolfs" who are not officially affiliated with the group but who are capable of carrying out terror attacks without detection by American authorities.
The shift to lone-wolf attacks highlights al Qaeda's continued influence and brand strength among jihadists following the rise of splinter groups such as ISIS. Al Qaeda is still a primary source of concern for the U.S. intelligence community, which continues to see the group as a central threat against American safety.
Al-Asiri emphasizes in his manifesto, published in the latest issue of al Qaeda's chief propaganda organ Inspire Magazine, that lone jihadists could easily carry out terror attacks on bustling locales, such as airports and train stations.
"We will be focusing on targeting means of transportation," the terror leader writes in the English-language article, which was first highlighted by the Middle East Media Research Institute. "We will explain more on this, which is part of the general policy of targeting the ring of security in the chain." READ MORE
