Al-Qaida No. 2 attacks leaders of Egypt, Yemen, Palestinians in Web message

CAIRO, Egypt (AP) _ Al-Qaida's deputy leader has criticized Palestinian and other Arab leaders, accusing them of betraying Islam and collaborating with the United States and Israel, according to an

Monday, January 1st 2007, 9:24 am

By: News On 6

CAIRO, Egypt (AP) _ Al-Qaida's deputy leader has criticized Palestinian and other Arab leaders, accusing them of betraying Islam and collaborating with the United States and Israel, according to an Internet statement posted in his name Monday.

The statement, purportedly from Ayman al-Zawahri, congratulated Islamic holy warriors around the world on the feast of Eid al-Adha and on ``the defeat of the Americans and their crusader allies in Afghanistan and Iraq.''

The message could not immediately be authenticated, but it appeared on two Islamic Web sites known for publishing militant material.

The most communicative of al-Qaida's leaders, al-Zawahri appeared to be trying to encourage militants _ those fighting and those in prison _ but his message offered nothing in the way of new ideas or policies.

Referring to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and a senior member of his Fatah party, al-Zawahri asked: ``How is it possible for Mahmoud Abbas to be a brother of ours, or for Mohammed Dahlan to be a brother of ours, when they have grown fat on the bribes of the Jews and gifts of the Americans?''

Senior Abbas aide Saeb Erekat called the statement ``absolutely unacceptable,'' and predicted it would not influence Palestinians.

Al-Zawahri, who issued 14 taped statements last year, has often told the Palestinians what they should be doing, but is not known to have an impact. The leading Palestinian militant group Hamas has distanced itself from al-Qaida, saying its struggle is against Israel, not the West at large.

It was not clear when the statement was written. It only gives the date ``December 2006'' and its Islamic calendar equivalent.

The statement did not mention events of the past few days that have made headlines around the Arab world, such as the execution of Saddam Hussein on Saturday and the Ethiopian forces' entry into the Somali capital, Mogadishu.

In fact, the statement appears to be ignorant of the defeat of the Islamic militia, the Union of Islamic Courts, which was driven out of Mogadishu by the Ethiopians. ``I also congratulate my Muslim brothers in Somalia and encourage them to be firm in defense of the honor of Islam,'' al-Zawahri says.

Al-Zawahri accuses the Egyptian, Saudi Arabian and Yemeni governments of serving the interests of the United States, adding that Washington ``bombs the Muslims in Afghanistan and Iraq,'' and orders Arab leaders to pump their oil wells dry and sell crude petroleum ``at the cheapest of rates to consume the nation's treasure.''

Al-Zawahri tossed out insults to various leaders, making no effort to substantiate his allegations. He called Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf a ``bribe-taker,'' Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak a ``traitor,'' Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh an ``agent of America,'' and he accused New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman of being a ``fanatical Zionist.''

He praised the al-Qaida-linked insurgents in Saudi Arabia, which he described as ``the American state of al Saud,'' and attacked the initiative of Saudi King Abdullah, which offered Israel full diplomatic relations in return for full withdrawal from Arab lands.

Shortly before the plan was adopted by the Arab Summit in Beirut in 2002, Friedman wrote that he had discussed the idea with the then-Crown Prince Abdullah.

Al-Zawahri said the plan, ``which the fanatical Zionist Thomas Friedman dictated to (Abdullah),'' orders Saudi citizens to ``recognize Israel and abandon Palestine.''

He encouraged Muslim women to continue wearing head scarves despite the ``fierce crusade'' against them. A scarved woman is ``a soldier in the battle of Islam against the Zionist crusade'' and ``she should know that the hijab (head scarf) _ a symbol of her modesty and purity _ tears (Westerners) apart inside because it exposes the depravity of their civilization,'' he said.

Al-Zawahri did not mention al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden, who has not issued a video or audio message for six months, but he praised the leader of the Taliban, Mullah Omar, whose anti-Western forces have staged a comeback since they were driven from power in Afghanistan in 2001. He called Omar ``the commander of the faithful.''

The text of the statement appeared in English, translated by the al-Qaida media production house, al-Sahab.