Report: Qaida Set Up Anti-drone Cells, Secret U.S. Documents Show
Al-Qaida's leaders have set up cells of engineers to try to shoot down, disable or hijack U.S. drones, The Washington Post reported late Tuesday citing top-secret U.S. intelligence documents.
The al-Qaida leadership is "hoping to exploit the technological vulnerabilities of a weapons system that has inflicted huge losses against the terrorist network," the Post said online.
"Although there is no evidence that al-Qaida has forced a drone crash or successfully interfered with flight operations, U.S. intelligence officials have closely tracked the group's persistent efforts to develop a counterdrone strategy since 2010," the report said, citing the secret documents.
The al-Qaida commanders are keen to achieve "a technological breakthrough (that) could curb the U.S. drone campaign, which has killed an estimated 3,000 people over the past decade," the Post reported.
Drone strikes have forced al-Qaida operatives to limit their movements in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Yemen, Somalia and other places.
They have also taken a toll among civilians in those countries, something that has fueled anti-U.S. sentiment.
Source: Agence France Presse
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