Tape justifies killing innocent Muslims
Voice purportedly belongs to al-Zarqawi
From Caroline Faraj
CNN Arabic.com
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BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- A chilling, rambling audio file thought to be from the most-wanted man in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, says religious doctrine justifies the killing of innocent Muslims by insurgents.
The message was posted on several Islamist Web sites Wednesday, the same day a senior U.S. military official said the Jordanian-born leader of al Qaeda in Iraq ordered the recent wave of car bombings.
CNN has been unable to confirm that the voice is that of al-Zarqawi. The tape introduces the speaker as al-Zarqawi, but the speaker does not identify himself.
The voice says in Arabic: "The shedding of Muslim blood ... is allowed in order to avoid the greater evil of disrupting jihad."
The voice says the protection of religion "is more important than protecting lives, honor or wealth."
"God knows that we were careful not to kill Muslims, and we have called off many operations in the past to avoid losses ... but we cannot kill infidels without killing some Muslims. It is unavoidable," he adds.
The speaker defends suicide attacks, saying, "killing of infidels by any method including martyrdom operations has been sanctified by many scholars even if it meant killing innocent Muslims."
"This legality has been agreed upon ... so as not to disrupt jihad," or "holy war," the recording says.
In Washington, Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, didn't seem to doubt the voice was that of al-Zarqawi, who has a $25 million bounty on his head.
"Talk about a guy who has no moral foundation. It's an absolute outrage," Myers said.
Lt. Gen. John Abizaid, head of the U.S. Army's Central Command, added, "It's the same old thing. He says that it's OK to kill Muslims, and that it's an Islamic duty. And it's incorrect. That's not true."
Abizaid also could not confirm reports about a meeting between al-Zarqawi and his lieutenants in Syria last month, where plans were allegedly laid for the recent spate of Iraqi violence.
He said that while the U.S. military is aware of insurgent activities taking place in Syria, there is no evidence of collusion with the Syrian government.
Myers and Abizaid were on Capitol Hill Wednesday to brief President Bush and senators on several military issues.
Relatively new tape
The only indication that the 67-minute recording is relatively new is a reference to Pope John Paul II. The voice says there was too much focus on the death of the pontiff in April and not enough on the "torture" of the Sunnis and "raping" of Muslim women in Iraq.
The speaker mentions all the attacks claimed by al Qaeda across the globe and makes reference to attacks by Shiites since 1981.
He mentions the Shiite-driven Badr Brigade, the militia group of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq.
The speaker says that the Shiite militia carried out 80 attacks in the 1980s that targeted Sunni Arabs in Iraq.
The Badr Brigade has renamed itself the Badr Organization and says it is no longer a militia. It was credited for helping the government arrest suspects in a recent Baghdad bombing.
The speaker said Iraq, unlike Afghanistan, lacks the mountains and forests to hide in, so insurgents have been forced to pursue "direct confrontation," such as suicide car bombings.
It is "very difficult for us, especially in Baghdad, which led us to increase our martyrs' attacks," a reference to suicide bombings.
Car bombings a preferred method
More than 400 Iraqis have been killed during the three weeks since the formation of Iraq's new transitional government, and insurgents, who once favored roadside bombs, are using more car-borne devices.
In May there have been 21 car bombings, mostly suicide attacks, in Baghdad and nearby. By contrast last year in the same area, fewer than half the attacks were car bombings.
In one recent car bombing investigators found a foot duct-taped to the accelerator pedal.
Intelligence suggests some drivers were unaware their cars were loaded with explosives when they were remotely detonated.
The military also theorizes some drivers have been forced at gunpoint into car bombings or that the drivers' families have been threatened with kidnapping.
In its quest to quell the spate of bombings, the U.S. military hunted for insurgents near Syrian border towns on the Euphrates River last week. The military estimated that more than 125 insurgents were killed and 39 other suspected fighters were captured.
Nine U.S. Marines died in the fighting, the military said.
Several of people identified as al-Zarqawi aides have been captured in the past month, including a man named Ammar al-Zubaydi (also known as Abu Abbas).
The military said last week al-Zubaydi was responsible for a string of car bombs in the Baghdad area on April 29. On that day, 12 explosions were reported in eight areas of the capital within a matter of hours.
Other developments
A delegation headed by Iraq's transitional prime minister, Ibrahim al-Jaafari, will travel this weekend to Turkey to meet Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, according to a news release from Turkey's Foreign Ministry. It will be al-Jaafari's first official trip outside Iraq since becoming prime minister three weeks ago.Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi, the highest-ranking representative from the largely Shiite Islamic republic to make an official visit to Iraq in the post-Saddam Hussein era, met with Iraq Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari in Baghdad. The two old enemies pledged to work together on border security.An 27-year-old Army reservist became the second soldier convicted in the Abu Ghraib prison scandal, according to The Associated Press. Spc. Sabrina Harman of Lorton, Virginia, was sentenced Tuesday to six months in prison after being convicted on six charges of mistreating detainees. (Full story)Australia is cautiously checking reports that hostage Douglas Wood will be released by Thursday. Militants abducted Wood last month and demanded that Australia withdraw its 1,400 troops from Iraq. (Full story)CNN's Kevin Flower contributed to this report.
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Associated Press contributed to this report.
