in Indian Subcontinent <br /><br />India has issued a security alert across a number of states after al-Qaeda head, Ayman al-Zawahiri,posted an on-line video to “raise the flag of jihad” in the Indian Subcontinent.<br /><br />The threat is being taken seriously, but counter-terrorism officers believe al-Qaeda needs publicity following the rise of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.<br /><br />Ajai Sahni is from the Institute of Conflict Management: “This is really a group today which is not some kind of a global threat, but a group that is struggling for its own survival and legitimacy in the eyes of the radicalised Muslim world.”<br /><br />In Shrinagar in Jammu and Kashmir, a city which has seen its fair share of political violence in recent times, the call for jihad generally unwelcome:<br /><br />“We want the Kashmir problem to be to be resolved through dialogue. The al-Qaeda chief should think twice before issuing any statement that he is to create and Indian wing here,” said Niyaz Illahi, a resident in the city. <br /><br />Al-Zawahiri wants to use cells in India to ferment discontent in Myanmar and Bangladesh.<br /><br />The states of Kashmir, Gujarat,Assam, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar have been placed on heightened alert.
