Security Expert Alok Bansal said today that the recently released video by Al-Qaeda's Ayman al-Zawahiri announcing the creation of a new branch of the organization in South Asia is just a way to show that Al Qaeda is still effective.He said this is to counter the many Islamic fundamentalist groups in recent times who have shifted their allegiance to the Iraq and Syria-based Islamic State.
He also said that the ideology of establishing an Islamic caliphate in India has always been there and Al-Qaeda believes in it.
Hinting at a recruitment race between Al-Qaeda and Islamic State (IS), formerly known as Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIS), Bansal said, "Before IS came into existence, nearly all the Islamic fundamentalist groups across the world were with Al-Qaeda. After IS became prominent, many of these groups have shifted their allegiance to Islamic State."
"Now, for Al-Qaeda to show that it is still effective, they have released this video," he added.
Bansal said, "This is a very serious matter, what we need to understand is that the ideology of establishing an Islamic caliphate in India has always been there and Al Qaeda believes in it."
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He also said that security agencies must take this very seriously as there is a threat that our citizens might be lured to join either of the two organizations.
The video released on September 3 shows Al-Zawahiri calling on Muslims to "wage jihad against its enemies, to liberate its land, to restore its sovereignty and to revive its caliphate."
Zawahiri, Osama bin Laden's right hand man, has been heading Al-Qaeda since Osama was killed in 2011.
