WASHINGTON – Al-Qaeda`s global network remains “remarkably resilient,”posing more of a threat in some regions than the Islamic State group, UNsanctions monitors said in a report seen by AFP on Wednesday.

The report sent to the Security Council said that Al-Qaeda in the ArabianPeninsula (AQAP), based in Yemen, served as a communications hub for theUN-designated terror group as a whole.

“Al-Qaeda affiliates remain the dominant terror threat in some regions,such as Somalia and Yemen, a fact demonstrated by a continuous stream ofattacks and foiled operations,” said the report.

In West Africa and South Asia, Al-Qaeda-linked groups pose as serious athreat as IS affiliates who “currently remain unable to reach a dominantposition,” it said.

UN member-states however see potential for linkups between Al-Qaeda and ISgroups to support each other, warning that in some regions this could be anew threat, the report said.

The Islamic State lost its self-declared caliphate in Syria and Iraq lastyear but Al-Qaeda “remained remarkably resilient,” said the UN monitors.

In Syria, the Al-Nusrah Front “remains one of the strongest and largestAl-Qaeda affiliates globally,” with its fighters “using threats, violenceand material incentives” to absorb smaller armed groups.

Al-Nusrah commands between 7,000 and 11,000 fighters, including severalthousand foreigners, and has its main power base in Syria`s Idlib province.

In Libya, IS remains intent on regaining a foothold following the loss ofSirte and has reinforced its presence with fighters returning from Iraq andSyria, the report said.

Fighters from Boko Haram, which has expanded its reach from northernNigeria, are maintaining small cells in Libya who could then move on toother regional countries.

“Member-states assessed that there is a potential for the transfer ofleaders from ISIL in Libya to other conflict zones in West Africa and theSahel region, including Mali,” said the report.