| A senior German police intelligence officer testified this week in a Dusseldorf court that an organized, hierarchical al Qaeda network no longer exists in Western Europe, Dutch media reported May 18. Al Qaeda's leadership has mostly ended direct planning and oversight of attacks, relying instead on video and Internet communications to inspire and promote continued attacks, she said. The officer was testifying in the trial of three Arab men accused of attempting to financially aid al Qaeda through an insurance scam, as well as attempting to procure material for a "dirty bomb." |