Aug. 22 (Bloomberg) -- The al-Qaeda network has gained in strength in the border region between Afghanistan and Pakistan even though it has become weaker in other parts of the world since 2001, according to a United Nations terrorism specialist.

``The one area where al-Qaeda has retained influence, or even consolidated or increased its standing over the last three years is in the Afghan/Pakistan border area,'' Richard Barrett, coordinator of a UN team that monitors al-Qaeda and the Taliban, said in a report yesterday. That contrasts, he said, with a backlash against the network from Egypt to Iraq and Saudi Arabia, and military successes against it since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the U.S.

The group's standing has been harmed by attacks that largely kill civilians, leading to the denunciation of its tactics in November 2007 by Sayyid Imam al Sharif, imprisoned leader of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad militant group, the report said.

Targeting al-Qaeda has been a major focus of the U.S.'s campaign against terrorism and authorities in Pakistan, Egypt, Morocco, Algeria, Saudi Arabia and other countries have pursued suspected members of the group locally. Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and his deputy Ayman al-Zawahiri remain at large.

``Given the attractions of the un-policed tribal areas on the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan it seems that al- Qaeda has little if any choice but to consolidate its presence'' there, the report said.

70 Killed

At least 70 people were killed and several others injured in twin suicide bomb explosions yesterday at a weapons factory near Pakistan's capital of Islamabad, an attack that was claimed by the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan or the Taliban Movement of Pakistan.

The government of Pakistan has been pressured by western leaders to do more to combat militants in the country's border areas. Pakistan's former President Pervez Musharraf, a key U.S. ally, was forced to quit Aug. 18. Asif Ali Zardari, co-leader of Pakistan's biggest party, pledged in a statement yesterday that authorities will continue to fight terrorism.

U.S. intelligence agencies say al-Qaeda has a haven in the tribal region and directs and funds Islamic militants waging a guerrilla war against Afghan President Hamid Karzai's government and NATO-led troops.

``The Pakistan Taliban, while a new and highly dangerous element in the mix, is not a single movement and may not provide al- Qaeda with the long-term protection and security that it needs,'' the report said.

The Afghan Taliban also no longer has the strategic closeness to al-Qaeda it developed when fighting Soviet forces in Afghanistan in the 1980s, the report said.

The group's leadership needs a ``make-over,'' as ``apart from bin Laden, Ayman al-Zawahiri and perhaps Abu Yahya al-Libi, even its most ardent supporters might find it hard to name or recognize another living hero of al-Qaeda terrorism,'' said the report, which was released late yesterday by the International Center for the Study of Radicalization and Political Violence.

In an audio file released in April, Zawahiri defended insurgent attacks in Iraq, Algeria and Morocco that have killed Muslims and blamed the West for using them as human shields.

Al-Qaeda in Iraq has lost support from Sunni tribal leaders in Anbar province, who are now siding with U.S.-led forces, in part because of the group's violent methods.

To contact the reporter on this story: Robin Stringer in New York at rstringer@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: August 21, 2008 20:52 EDT