In the aftermath of 9/11 and the US-led invasion of Afghanistan much of al-Qaeda's infrastructure including its training camps were destroyed. Peter Taylor's three part series examines the new al-Qaeda which has emerged and the threat it poses to the West. The first part, jihad.com explores how the internet has become the lifeblood of the new al-Qaeda.
The internet has been key in pulling together the shattered remains of the organisation that operated before the invasion of Afghanistan, according to the general running the Iraq war, Lt Gen John Abizaid.
He says: "The only safe haven that remains for al-Qaeda is the virtual realm. It is one that we all should be worried about."
Mike Sheuer, former head of the CIA Bin Laden unit, agrees: "The current state of al-Qaeda and the health of al-Qaeda is largely due to its ability to manipulate the internet."
Following a year-long investigation, and just over two weeks after the London bomb attacks, BBC reporter and terrorism expert Peter Taylor peers into the murky world of the internet jihadi.
He discovers how bloodthirsty videos are made in Iraq and circulated by webmasters in the UK and elsewhere, in an underground broadcasting network.
He finds the web has become a secret and safe means of communication, as well as an inexhaustible online library of training manuals and information on how to carry out terrorist attacks.
