Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Britain now No 1 al-Qaida target - anti-terror chiefs

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Britain now No 1 al-Qaida target - anti-terror chiefs: "Britain has become the main target for a resurgent al-Qaida, which has successfully regrouped and now presents a greater threat than ever before, according to counter-terrorist officials. They have revised their views about the strength of the network abroad, and the methods terrorists are able to use in the UK.

Intelligence chiefs with access to the most comprehensive and up to date information have told the Guardian that al-Qaida has substantially recovered its organisation in Pakistan, despite a four-year military campaign to seek out and kill its leaders. In that time, the organisation has become much more coherent, with a strong core and a regular supply of volunteers.

More worrying, officials say, is evidence of new techniques that would-be terrorists within the UK have adopted. The structure of individual al-Qaida-inspired groups is much more like the old Provisional IRA cells, with self-contained units comprising a lead organiser/planner, a quartermaster in charge of weapons and explosives acquisition and training, and several volunteers.

Officials describe these groups as 'multi-tasking' - involved in fraud and fundraising and courier work as well as planning attacks. 'There is a hierarchy within each cell with a very tightly run command and control,' said one counter-terrorism source" Read complete post here.