Official: Al Qaeda May Be Boosting Actions in Afghanistan

KABUL — The American military is seeing early signs that Al Qaeda may be stepping up its activities in Afghanistan, a senior defense official said for the first time today as Secretary Gates made his third trip to this country.

Mr. Gates said he has not yet seen data on any uptick in Al Qaeda activity, but he said increasing levels of violence in the country are a concern and he plans to talk about it with other defense leaders from NATO nations operating in Afghanistan.

"I'm not worried about a backslide as much as I am (about) how we continue the momentum going forward," Mr. Gates told reporters in Djibouti today just before he left for Kabul. "One of the clear concerns that we all have is that in the last two or three years there has been a continuing increase in the overall level of violence."

The senior defense official said the American military is concerned and is looking for definitive signs of greater activity by Al Qaeda and foreign fighters, but America has not seen enough proof to draw any final conclusions. The official discussed the terrorist network on condition of anonymity because of the security concerns.

As Mr. Gates headed to Kabul, American officials also said they are now considering the possibility of providing arms to local tribes in Afghanistan, along with training, equipment, and other support. The effort would be modeled after successful efforts in Iraq to empower the locals to police their own neighborhoods.

While no decisions have been made, officials said the plan is under review.

The American military has been pushing the idea that more attention must be paid to tribal leaders in the provinces in both Afghanistan and Iraq, rather than focusing all the attention on buttressing the central governments of those two wartorn nations. The thinking is that the locals are closer to the community and their people, and thus can better police their own streets.

Military officials have said they believe that the Taliban in Afghanistan is being refueled, possibly by militants in Pakistan crossing the border, or through support from other countries in the region sympathetic to the militants.

Insurgents are also finding more financing, including by taxing the widespread poppy crops that are used to make opium drugs.

Senior officials with Mr. Gates said they are troubled by the overall increase in violence in Afghanistan, particularly in the south. And they said it will be a key topic of discussion when Mr. Gates and other defense leaders from countries involved in the coalition in that region meet in Scotland later this month.

This year has been the most violent since the American-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001. Insurgency-related violence has claimed nearly 6,200 lives, according to a tally of figures from Afghan and Western officials.

The number of attacks has surged, including roadside bombings and suicide assaults.