Al-Qaida on track to surpass Islamic State among Jihadis

President Biden's chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan last summer and the Taliban's establishment of the Islamic Emirate has boosted al-Qaida to be once again been seen as a leading terror group and threat to the West, new United Nations intelligence shows.

"Al-Qaida propaganda is now better developed to compete with [the Islamic State] as the key actor in inspiring the international threat environment, and it may ultimately become a greater source of directed threat," reads the UN report to member states, according to Voice of America.

The Islamic State "has suffered a rapid succession of leadership losses since October 2019, with an as yet unknown impact on its operational health," the report also states.

Al-Qaida's 71-year-old leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri, who has been rumored to be sick or dying, is reportedly "alive and communicating freely."

Al-Qaida, led by Osama bin Laden when the group executed the 9/11 terror attacks, now has a formal leadership structure in place following order of seniority.

The terror group appears to be favoring its affiliates in Africa over those in the Arabian Peninsula, intelligence from at least one UN member state reported. 

Specfically, the Somalia-based affiliate al-Shabab may be gaining financially with up to $100 million in yearly revenue.