25 years after 9/11, al Qaeda remains a threat – even as Washington looks away

Al Shabaab, which controls large parts of Somalia, remains one of the most formidable al Qaeda affiliates. © Farah Abdi Warsameh, AP file photo

A quarter of a century after the deadliest terrorist attacks in US history, al Qaeda’s various branches have moved away from the global jihad advocated by Osama bin Laden, focusing instead on regional insurgencies. Their actions continue to destabilise swathes of the world, from the Sahel to Afghanistan, neglected by a US administration that critics say has unlearned the lessons of 9/11.

Twenty-five years after 9/11, al Qaeda is a very different force from the one that struck at the heart of America. But it is far from spent.