CIA veteran: al-Qaida will rebuild within Afghanistan

By MATTHEW BARAKAT
Associated Press

FALLS CHURCH, Va. (AP) — The CIA man who briefed President George W. Bush on Sept. 11, 2001 says he’s convinced the Taliban will invite al-Qaida back to rebuild in Afghanistan. Michael Morell, who twice served as acting CIA director, spoke Tuesday at an online forum sponsored by federal prosecutors in Virginia to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. Morell said the U.S. is effective at degrading the capabilities of terrorist groups like al-Qaida when it puts such groups in its sights. But he said terrorist groups have shown their capability to rebuild when that focus wanes.