lucky wilbury
05-19-2005, 12:20 AM
http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/w-me/2005/may/18/051808966.html
Alleged Al-Zarqawi Tape Defends Deaths
By MAGGIE MICHAEL
ASSOCIATED PRESS
CAIRO, Egypt (AP) -
An Internet audiotape posted Wednesday, purportedly by al-Qaida-in-Iraq leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, justifies the deaths of fellow Muslims in attacks against U.S. troops and their Iraqi allies by saying that jihad - or holy war - dwarfs all other concerns.
"God ordered us to attack the infidels by all means ... even if armed infidels and unintended victims - women and children - are killed together," the speaker said. "The priority is for jihad so anything that slows down jihad should be overcome."
The defense of the deadly attacks could be aimed at bolstering the ranks of the insurgency with Sunni Arabs who may have initially shied away over concerns about innocent civilians being killed. The speaker claimed that top religious scholars have repeatedly sanctioned suicide bombings.
The tape was the first said to be from the Jordanian-born militant since a new, Shiite-dominated government was put in place in early May. In the past weeks, al-Qaida in Iraq and other militant groups have stepped up their campaign of car bombings, suicide attacks, shootings and kidnappings.
The authenticity of the tape, posted on an Internet Web forum where al-Qaida in Iraq statements are often posted, could not be independently verified. The voice resembled that on previous al-Zarqawi tapes. U.S. intelligence was conducting a technical analysis to verify its authenticity, said an American official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
At the Pentagon, Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said al-Zarqawi's justifications for killing fellow Muslims showed he "has absolutely no moral foundation. It's an outrage."
"What he says is it's OK for Muslims to kill Muslims, and not just any Muslims but innocents, men, women and children," Myers told a news conference. "And that's what he's been doing. If you look at the statistics over the last couple of weeks, a lot of Iraqi men, women and children have died because this violent extremist is trying to convince others to do it."
In the tape, the speaker denounced Shiites, accusing Shiite militias operated by parties that are now part of the government of assassinating Sunni Muslim figures, kidnapping Sunni women and seizing mosques since the U.S.-led invasion two years ago.
"These hateful brigades ... deported Sunni families from the south, killed hundreds of the Sunnis, took over the mosques, and turned them to bastions of apostasy," he said.
Shiites are "collaborating with the worshippers of the cross," who invaded Iraq, corrupted the country and violated holy sites, the speaker said. "This is all taking place under of a state of apostasy among the rulers of this nation."
A senior U.S. military official said lieutenants of al-Zarqawi - and perhaps al-Zarqawi himself - held a meeting in neighboring Syria about a month ago to plan an intensified series of car bombings and other attacks throughout Iraq.
There were 21 car bombings in Baghdad so far in May, compared with 25 such attacks in the capital in all of 2004, said the official, who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity.
"He said he's trying to provoke a civil war. He's trying to keep freedom from happening in the Middle East," Myers told reporters.
Alleged Al-Zarqawi Tape Defends Deaths
By MAGGIE MICHAEL
ASSOCIATED PRESS
CAIRO, Egypt (AP) -
An Internet audiotape posted Wednesday, purportedly by al-Qaida-in-Iraq leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, justifies the deaths of fellow Muslims in attacks against U.S. troops and their Iraqi allies by saying that jihad - or holy war - dwarfs all other concerns.
"God ordered us to attack the infidels by all means ... even if armed infidels and unintended victims - women and children - are killed together," the speaker said. "The priority is for jihad so anything that slows down jihad should be overcome."
The defense of the deadly attacks could be aimed at bolstering the ranks of the insurgency with Sunni Arabs who may have initially shied away over concerns about innocent civilians being killed. The speaker claimed that top religious scholars have repeatedly sanctioned suicide bombings.
The tape was the first said to be from the Jordanian-born militant since a new, Shiite-dominated government was put in place in early May. In the past weeks, al-Qaida in Iraq and other militant groups have stepped up their campaign of car bombings, suicide attacks, shootings and kidnappings.
The authenticity of the tape, posted on an Internet Web forum where al-Qaida in Iraq statements are often posted, could not be independently verified. The voice resembled that on previous al-Zarqawi tapes. U.S. intelligence was conducting a technical analysis to verify its authenticity, said an American official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
At the Pentagon, Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said al-Zarqawi's justifications for killing fellow Muslims showed he "has absolutely no moral foundation. It's an outrage."
"What he says is it's OK for Muslims to kill Muslims, and not just any Muslims but innocents, men, women and children," Myers told a news conference. "And that's what he's been doing. If you look at the statistics over the last couple of weeks, a lot of Iraqi men, women and children have died because this violent extremist is trying to convince others to do it."
In the tape, the speaker denounced Shiites, accusing Shiite militias operated by parties that are now part of the government of assassinating Sunni Muslim figures, kidnapping Sunni women and seizing mosques since the U.S.-led invasion two years ago.
"These hateful brigades ... deported Sunni families from the south, killed hundreds of the Sunnis, took over the mosques, and turned them to bastions of apostasy," he said.
Shiites are "collaborating with the worshippers of the cross," who invaded Iraq, corrupted the country and violated holy sites, the speaker said. "This is all taking place under of a state of apostasy among the rulers of this nation."
A senior U.S. military official said lieutenants of al-Zarqawi - and perhaps al-Zarqawi himself - held a meeting in neighboring Syria about a month ago to plan an intensified series of car bombings and other attacks throughout Iraq.
There were 21 car bombings in Baghdad so far in May, compared with 25 such attacks in the capital in all of 2004, said the official, who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity.
"He said he's trying to provoke a civil war. He's trying to keep freedom from happening in the Middle East," Myers told reporters.