Countries with large terrorism presence
Terrorists have long found refuge in countries and in many cases worked hand in hand with the local governments. Today several countries
continue to attract terrorists for training and consipiring their attacks. The host countries do not try to disassociate
themselves fully from their ties to terrorism and in some cases continue to provide tacit support and use terror to accomplish
broader objectives. Some of the countries with significant terrorist operations include:
Afghanistan
Afghanistan became the hotbed of Islamic terror activities in the mid-1990s. With the radical Taliban government establishing
control, several radical Islamic (mostly Sunni) terror organizations used Afghanistan as their training and operational base.
Al Qaeda was the broad umbrella organization that recruited terrorists from Pakistan, Afghanistan, Central Asia and around the
world, training them in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Some of the terrosist groups still operating in the region include Al Qaeda,
Al-Jihad, Lashkar-i-Jhangvi, Islamic Group, Armed Islamic Group, Harkat-ul-Mujahideen and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan.
Iran
Iran has long been an active sponsor of Islamic terrorism, including accusations of it supporting subversive activities in Iraq.
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Ministry of Intelligence and Security were involved in the planning of and support for
terrorist acts and continued to exhort a variety of groups that use terrorism to pursue their goals. Several terrorist groups
including Lebanese Hizballah, HAMAS, the Palestine Islamic Jihad, and Ahmad Jibril's PFLP-GC have been provided funding,
safehaven, training, and weapons in Iran.
Iraq
Since the US led invasion of Iraq, the country has fallen into a violent spiral. The presence of US troops has attracted Islamic
terrorists from the Middle-East and around the world. Al-Qaeda is believed to have established a toe-hold in the country along
with various splinter groups. Some of the other terror organizations active in Iraq include Ansar al-Islam, Al-Faruq Brigades,
Al-Mahdi Army, Iraqi Resistance Islamic Front (JAMI), Jamaat al-Tawhid wa'l-Jihad, Jaysh Muhammad and Kurdistan People’s Congress (KHK).
Pakistan
Pakistan has long been a staging ground and planning centre for Islamic terrorists operating in South Asia. After the launch of
Operation Enduring Freedom, thousands of terrorists were either killed or driven out of Afghansistan, mostly finding refuge in
Pakistan. Pakistan and its secret service (ISI) have also been accused of training and funding several terrorist groups
operating in Indian Kashmir. To many the links are clear, since the the terrorist groups based in Pakistan operate in plain
sight and have a distinct Indian focus. More recently, groups aligned with Al Qaeda and based in Pakistan have been responsbile for
numerous terrorist attacks in Afghanistan. Some of these terror groups include Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Muhammad, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, Al Qaeda,
Tehreek-e-Jaferia, Sipah-e-Sahaba, Al Badr, Harkat ul-Ansar, Hizb-ul-Mujahideen, Tehreek-e-Nafaz-e-Shariat-e-Mohammadi,
Jamaat ul-Fuqra and Muslim United Army.
Syria
Even as Syria continues to reduce its presence in Lebanaon, it also continues to fund and host Palestinian and possibly Iraqi
terrorist organizations. HAMAS, the PIJ, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command, and the Popular
Front for the Liberation of Palestine continue to operate from Syria.
Sudan
The African country of Sudan been a training hub and safe haven for members of several of the more violent international
terrorist and radical Islamic groups of the last decade. Among the terror groups known to have operated from Sudan are
Hezbollah (Party of God), Palestine Islamic Jihad, Abu Nidal Organization, HAMAS (Islamic Resistance Movement) and several
smaller Islamic insurgent groups operating regionally in Ethiopia, Eritrea, Uganda, and Tunisia.