SAMARRA, Iraq, April 17 (UPI) -- Al-Qaida is poised to attack again in Iraq and will continue to be a threat after U.S. forces leave, an Iraqi general says.
Speaking to al-Sumaria TV Saturday, Brig. Gen. Rashid Falih, commander in Samarra, warned, "The al-Qaida threat is ongoing. No security chief can assume that his region is totally purged of Qaida sleeper cells. I oppose statements claiming that al-Qaida is over in Iraq. The network waits for the right time to strike."
"Al-Qaida's budget is mammoth, and it has several training locations. Al-Qaida's doctrines are mischievous," he added.
Since the killing of leaders Abu Omar al-Baghdadi and Abu Ayoub al-Masri in April 2010, al-Qaida has shifted its tactics, targeting army and police checkpoints, using silencers and car bombs and robbing banks and jewelry stores, the officer said.
