Al Qaeda continues to build its base in the ungoverned areas of Pakistan and is as strong as it was in 2001 during the planning stage for the US terrorist attacks, according to a classified document cited by CNN and public testimony.

"We actually see the Al Qaeda central being resurgent in their role in planning operations," John Kringen, head of the CIA's intelligence directorate, told the House Armed Services Committee. "They seem to be fairly well settled into the safe haven in the ungoverned spaces of Pakistan ... We see more training. We see more money. We see more communications."

The five-page document cited by CNN reflected findings that will be part of the next National Intelligence Estimate to be released later this summer, CNN said, quoting anonymous sources.

Responding to Kringen's comments and reports on the document, Senate Majority leader Harry Reid said in a statement that he was not surprised "that Al Qaeda has been able to reorganize and rebuild ... given President Bush's stubborn dedication to keeping our overextended military mired in an Iraqi civil war."

Reid, who is leading Democratic efforts in the Senate to bring an early end to the war in Iraq, said in a statement it was a "travesty" that Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden remained at large six years after the terrorist attacks. He blamed it on the White House's "flawed strategy" of fighting an unwinnable war in Iraq while letting the real enemy in Afghanistan and Pakistan go free.

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff caused a stir earlier this week with remarks in a newspaper interview that he had a "gut feeling" Al Qaeda was poised to carry out an attack on US soil this summer.

Chertoff back-pedalled on Wednesday, saying he had "no single piece of intelligence" that was worrisome. He cited the recent attempted attacks in London and Glasgow as reasons to worry about more attacks.

The White House said Wednesday there was "no credible intelligence" suggesting a possible terrorist attack against the United States this summer.

In a separate development, a new threatening videotape translated in Washington shows bin Laden's deputy, Ayman al-Zawahiri, calling on Pakistanis to rise up against Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf following the storming of the mosque in Islamabad.

"This is a message of blinding clarity to the Muslims in Pakistan," the Al Qaeda deputy said. "This crime can only be washed away by repentance or blood."

To add to unease about a terrorist attack, a US government agency - the Government Accountability Office - released a report Wednesday that showed how easy it is to obtain official licences to buy and handle radioactive materials needed to build a so-called dirty bomb, media reports said.