I will be adding a lot to this thread in the coming days, any information specifically related to al Zarqawi is welcomed...

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Abu Musab al-Zarqawi (possibly born on October 20, 1966) is a shadowy Jordanian national who is wanted as an international terrorist. He is from the town of Zarqa, a poor and crime-ridden industrial town 30 minutes northeast of Amman. One alias, Ahmad Fadeel al-Nazal al-Khalayleh, is believed to be his real name. Zarqawi literally translates into 'man from zarqa'. As a suspected Islamist militant, Zarqawi is believed to be violently opposed to the presence of U.S., Israeli and allied military forces in the Islamic world.

More...

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Profile: Abu Musab al-Zarqawi

Abu Musab al-Zarqawi - a man notorious for his alleged ruthlessness - is suspected of direct involvement in the kidnap and beheading of several foreigners in Iraq - even of wielding the knife himself.

Washington has also accused the 37-year-old Jordanian radical of masterminding a string of spectacular suicide bombings in Iraq, and of being linked to al-Qaeda.

After viewing a video of the beheading of American engineer Eugene Armstrong, taken hostage in Baghdad in September 2004 along with a fellow American and a Briton, the CIA believes with a "high degree of confidence" that it was Zarqawi who read out a statement and then carried out the murder.

The video followed a pattern which has become grimly familiar since American contractor Nick Berg was shown being killed in May 2004.

A group of militants clad in black stand in front of the banner of Zarqawi's group, Tawhid and Jihad, with their victim kneeling before them.

After reading a statement, a militant leans over the bound and blindfolded prisoner and cuts off his head with a knife.

Those killed in this fashion include another American, a South Korean and a Bulgarian. A Turkish hostage was shot three times in the head.

More...

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New photos believed to be al-Zarqawi
Saturday, March 5, 2005

(CNN) -- CNN has obtained new pictures believed to show America's most-wanted terrorist in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, whose network carries out frequent attacks against Iraqi and U.S. civilians and multinational troops.

The United States has placed a $25 million bounty on the Jordanian-born al-Zarqawi's head. He is wanted for fueling the insurgency in Iraq and in connection with the beheadings of several Western hostages and Iraqi and Arab civilians.

Islamic Web sites have posted at least two videos said to show his followers publicly executing men they believe are associated with the U.S.-led occupation.

Intelligence officials said this week that al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden has enlisted the help of al-Zarqawi to plan new attacks inside the United States.

Sources tell CNN the man in the photos is indeed al-Zarqawi.
Changed group name

Al-Zarqawi's group is believed to be responsible for car bombings and beheadings throughout Iraq. Last year, he declared his allegiance to al Qaeda and changed the name of his group from Unification and Jihad to al Qaeda in Iraq.

An audiotape message attributed to al-Zarqawi called the January 30 election for Iraq's National Assembly and provincial councils a "big American lie."

The audiotape was posted on an Islamic Web site in January. In it, the man called Iraq's interim government a tool used by "Americans to promote this lie that is called democracy ... You have to be careful of the enemy's plots that involve applying democracy in your country and confront these plots."

His group is believed to have carried out attacks during the election.

In the statement, he declared that democracy's principles of majority rule and pluralism "allow infidelity and wrong practices to spread."
Photos show relaxed situation

It is unclear how recently the photos were taken, but they appear to be taken at the same time and place.

In the pictures, the man believed to be al-Zarqawi is bearded and well-trimmed, and he appears relaxed.

It looks as if he is sitting on the floor against a wall. He is wearing a dark shirt or turtleneck.

In the pictures he is seen smiling, looking straight ahead or chatting with unknown people.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast...pics/index.html 

The world's most dangerous terrorist
By Henry Schuster
Friday, January 21, 2005

(CNN) -- Abu Musab al-Zarqawi pledges allegiance to Osama bin Laden. Bin Laden gives his blessing to al-Zarqawi. So which man is the most dangerous terrorist in the world?

This question seems as good a way as any to welcome you to Tracking Terror. I've been covering terrorism for CNN for more than a decade, and this weekly space will be aimed at reporting, analyzing and even provoking discussion on issues of terrorism and security.

Which brings us to the issue at hand.

There seems little doubt that if there were a ranking of most dangerous terrorists, these two men would be at the top. But who is more dangerous?

In many ways bin Laden and al-Zarqawi represent two different types of threat.

The two men have a past together in Afghanistan, but no one is quite sure what it is.

But what matters most is that during the past 18 months, bin Laden has been repeatedly calling for an uprising in Iraq, while al-Zarqawi has been on the ground, carrying out a series of bloody attacks, from suicide car bombings to beheadings.

When al-Zarqawi made the first move towards bin Laden last year, sending him letters asking for bin Laden's blessing and said his group was ready to offer its support. There was silence from bin Laden.

Then a couple of months ago, al-Zarqawi's group changed its name, started calling itself al Qaeda in Mesopotamia. In a message a few weeks later, bin Laden offered his blessing to al-Zarqawi.

Arguably, bin Laden had no choice. While al-Zarqawi has been waging his campaign of terror in Iraq, bin Laden's threat as an operational terrorist ended with 9/11 and the subsequent U.S. invasion of Afghanistan. As the White House keeps saying, bin Laden is on the run and that diminishes his ability to carry out attacks. Losing a number of lieutenants, most notably Khalid Shaikh Mohammed (who planned 9/11), has also been a blow.

Al-Zarqawi has been busy, trying to make himself the leader of the insurgency in Iraq, and not being shy about it. He puts out his own audio tapes over the Internet, in the style of bin Laden, and most chillingly he claimed to be the man behind the mask executing American Nicholas Berg.

If you used death tolls as a measure, then bin Laden is ahead. September 11, the embassy bombings and a number of other attacks mean bin Laden has been directly responsible for at least 3,500 deaths.

Al-Zarqawi is closing the gap. Quickly and bloodily. He's still far behind, but not through lack of trying in places like Baghdad, Karbala and Najaf. It is just that his targets are smaller. But there are a lot more of them, and they have been much more recent.

Al-Zarqawi is primarily operational. Bin Laden is primarily inspirational.

Being on the run hasn't shut bin Laden up. To the contrary. He's put out about 30 messages since September 11. And there is little doubt that as a symbol, he has turned al Qaeda into something more akin to a movement than a simple terrorist organization.

Paul Eedle, a British journalist who has been following both men's careers on the Internet, puts it this way: Al-Zarqawi is in danger of imploding America's entire Middle East strategy. Bin Laden has the ability to catalyze new conflicts, making himself the leader of a worldwide movement.

"I don't think Zarqawi is going to join the dots. You can define his boundaries."

Eedle says as potent a symbol as bin Laden has become, he remains more than that. "Bin Laden is still capable of doing the unthinkable...such as trying to recruit Ukranians with fissile material."

Two very dangerous men. One a threat in a specific place where the stakes are extremely high. The other a symbol and a leader of a more transnational movement.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast...rist/index.html 

Al-Zarqawi still leading the fight in Iraq: website

DUBAI, March 7 (AFP) - The most wanted man in Iraq, Jordanian-born militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, is in good health and leading operations, his group said in a statement Monday, as Iraqi and US troops stepped up efforts to find him.

"Our sheikh Abu Musab, may God watch over him, is in good health. He is preparing for battles and is leading the fight in Iraq," read a statement from the Organization of Al-Qaeda of Jihad published on an Islamist website.

The authenticity of the message could not immediately be verified.

"You will soon hear a speech from our sheikh," it said.

Since Saturday, commandos from Iraq's interior ministry and US troops have closed off entrances to Samarra and launched raids in the city and surrounding areas in search for suspects that might lead them to Zarqawi.

The Iraqi government on Monday released new pictures of the militant, who has a 25 million bounty on his head and is blamed for the worst bombings in Iraq, showing him bearded and in conversation with an individual.

The Organisation of Al-Qaeda of Jihad statement said the pictures had been in the possession of an Al-Qaeda information section worker who was killed in combat.

"Our brother died as a martyr and the pictures fell into the hands of the infidels," it said.

http://www.politicalgateway.com/news/read.html?id=3138 

ZARQAWI THE NEW OSAMA

April 27, 2005 -- WASHINGTON — Information seized from Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's laptop computer revealed the Jordanian master terrorist has been expanding his jihad network outside Iraq and is emerging as al Qaeda's preeminent global military commander, The Post has learned.

U.S. intelligence officials who were briefed on data gleaned from a computer taken after a Feb. 20 U.S. Special Forces ambush in Iraq — in which Zarqawi narrowly escaped — said they have discovered shocking new details about the growing threat to U.S. and Western interests posed by the brutish Zarqawi — who is rapidly eclipsing Osama bin Laden in importance.

"He's becoming the new bin Laden. He's the man out there carrying out attacks on Americans every day while bin Laden, who is heavily pressured and having difficulty communicating on a regular basis, is in the shadows and becoming more of a symbolic figure," said former CIA counterterrorism director Vincent Cannistraro.

Counterterrorism expert Rita Katz added, "Zarqawi is more visible and available than bin Laden right now and seems to be the man most willing to take the fight to the Americans," Originally considered a rival of bin Laden, Zarqawi recently pledged allegiance to al Qaeda and changed the name of his organization to "al Qaeda in Iraq."

The data in his computer reveals Zarqawi is directing scores of fanatics from Yemen, Saudi Arabia and other Arab states who volunteered for "martyrdom" missions in Iraq and other countries, sources said.

"The information has given us new insight into the scope of his operations outside of Iraq that we did not know about previously," said a U.S. intelligence official familiar with the analysis.

The official said new secret counterterror operations have been launched by the CIA and intelligence services of other countries as a result of information in his laptop.

Sources said the computer files also yielded recent communications with al Qaeda leaders including a message from bin Laden's No 2 man, Ayman al-Zawahiri, in which he urged Zarqawi to expand his operations outside Iraq to include attacks on Americans in the United States.

The Department of Homeland Security released details of that message in a bulletin to law-enforcement agencies last month.

http://www.nypost.com/news/worldnews/45476.htm 

Zarqawi attack on inspector cut short the hunt for WMD

The American who led the hunt for Iraq's missing weapons of mass destruction has revealed that the investigation was cut short after he was targeted by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the militant leader in an attack that left two people dead. The head of the Iraq Survey Group, Charles Duelfer, has reported that his investigation into the possible transfer of WMD to Syria had been wound up because of the "declining security situation".

But, in an interview with The Independent, Mr Duelfer said that Zarqawi had claimed responsibility for the car-bomb attack on his convoy on 6 November 2004. "A car-bomb tried to get me and my follow car," Mr Duelfer said. "Two of my guards were killed and one was badly wounded. My hearing's not been right since."

Mr Duelfer, in an addendum to the final report which runs to thousands of pages, concluded that there was no evidence that WMD had been moved to Syria by Saddam Hussein. The report contradicted assertions by Donald Rumsfeld, the US Secretary of Defence, who claimed after the war that the lack of WMD in Iraq might be explained this way.

Mr Duelfer reported just before the US presidential election last November that his 1,500-strong group had found "no evidence" that Saddam had possessed chemical, biological or nuclear weapons. His dossier demolished claims by the British government and Bush administration issued before the Iraq war that Saddam's weapons were a threat to the US and Britain.

Mr Duelfer denied suggestions - including from an Australian colleague, the weapons inspector Rod Barton - that he had been subjected to political pressure by the US or British authorities. He confirmed that John Scarlett, the head of MI6, had mentioned some "nuggets" that could be put into his interim report, issued in March last year. "I looked at them, and didn't include them," he said.

But he added that he did not construe such suggestions to be political pressure. "I got a lot of suggestions from governments with big intelligence operations. It would be foolish of me not to look at them.

"There was political interest, but that's not the same as political pressure," he said. "There was a desire on the part of capitals to find WMD. It would have made everyone's life much easier. But the view was: let the chips fall where they may."

Asked what he had achieved in his 18 months in Iraq, Mr Duelfer said he had built up a comprehensive picture of Saddam's strategic intent. He believes that given the opportunity, which would have come with the lifting of UN sanctions, the Iraqi dictator was poised to resume his banned weapons activities. "I think there's a decent set of data on the table." After hours of debriefing more than 100 Iraqi scientists and experts, "I think I understand the motivation of the regime."

He explained that his attempt to comprehend the workings of Saddam's regime had led him to the oil-for-food scandal. In his report, he contended that Saddam's government siphoned more than $2bn (£1.05bn) in illicit bribes and kickbacks from companies that traded with Iraq through the UN's humanitarian oil-for-food scheme. Six investigations are now under way into the scandal.

Mr Duelfer, who backed the invasion of Iraq, said his team had drawn up a timeline of international events in order to understand the mindset of the isolated Iraqi leader. "We wanted to know what was he looking at when he made this or that decision, for example, going to war with Iran," he said.

Asked why he had not gone to such trouble to understand the mindset of the Iraqi dictator in the 1990s, when he was deputy head of the UN inspection agency Unscom, Mr Duelfer argued that Iraq's obstruction of the arms monitors had not been conducive to such an approach.

"The patterns of behaviour reinforced assumptions," he said. He also recognised that because of the lack of relations between America and Iraq in the 1990s, the lack of direct intelligence from the ground was also an impediment.

"There was a systemic problem in the intelligence community," he noted. "What I think I missed was how high Saddam's priority was to get out of sanctions. From 1991, it was the number one priority."

Mr Duelfer has retired as a weapons inspector but will write an account of his time in Iraq. His next project is as consultant to a mission planning to resume manned flights to the Moon.

http://news.independent.co.uk/world...sp?story=633667 

Alleged Zarqawi tape threatens new attacks

An audiotape purportedly by America's most-wanted insurgent in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, posted Friday on the Internet threatens more attacks against U.S. forces and urges followers to be wary of any American attempts at dialogue.

The authenticity of the 18-minute tape, posted on a Web site known for carrying messages from Islamic militant groups, could not be determined. The voice on the tape sounded similar to previous audiotapes attributed to the Jordanian-born militant who leads an al-Qaida affiliate in Iraq.

"After conducting a technical analysis, we assess with high confidence that the voice is that of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi," said a U.S. intelligence official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The voice on the tape directly addresses U.S. President George W. Bush, who on Thursday welcomed the new Iraqi government and again promised American help fighting insurgents.

"You, Bush, we will not rest until we avenge our dignity," the voice said. "We will not rest while your army is here as long as there is a pulse in our veins."

It wasn't clear exactly when the tape was made, but the speaker refers to a newspaper article he said was dated March 19 and then makes a separate reference to the story as having come "this month."

The tape urged al-Zarqawi's followers to step up their attacks on American soldiers.

"Move ahead with God's blessing," the voice commands. "Before the fall of this night, I want to see your swords dripping with the blood of your enemy."

The speaker warns followers against any American overtures for dialogue, an apparent reference to reported attempts by the U.S.-backed former Iraqi Premier Ayad Allawi to open contacts with some insurgents in an attempt to persuade them to lay down their arms in exchange for amnesty and a say in politics.

Leaders of the Muslim Scholars Association, the main Sunni Muslim political front, have acknowledged U.S. diplomats have tried to persuade them to end the insurgency in the Arab Sunni areas.

"Be aware, these are the devil's tricks," he warned. "They (the Americans) have offered this dialogue after the defeats they have suffered."

"Fight them in order to avoid sedition. Your holy war will bear fruit," he said.

The speaker also blasted Iraqi Sunni Muslim clerics for failing to support the insurgency. "Where are the Sunni scholars? Why we do not hear their voices?" he asks.

It mocked Iraqi Shiites, calling them "rotten." Al-Zarqawi's group, like al-Qaida, considers Shiite Muslims infidels.

The United States has offered a US$25 million reward for information leading to al-Zarqawi's arrest.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/englis...tent_439058.htm 

Zarqawi aide calls for attacks on Vatican, White House

DUBAI — The deputy to Al Qaeda’s frontman in Iraq, Abu Musab Al Zarqawi, has asked for orders to attack the White House and the Vatican, according to an audiotape posted on the Internet yesterday.

“To our emir (leader) Abu Musab Al Zarqawi ... we say: We are ready for your orders. We are determined to fight the infidels,” said Sheikh Abdulrahman Al Iraqi in the tape, whose authenticity could not be verified.

“If you point at the White House or the Vatican, we would make every effort so that you reach your target,” he added, in the online statement broadcast a day after a call by Zarqawi to his followers to intensify their fight against the Americans in Iraq.

This is the first time that Al Qaeda, the terror group led by Osama bin Laden, mentions the Vatican as a possible target.

http://www.timesofoman.com/newsdetails.asp?newsid=14753 

Im surprised there have been no Zarqawi tee shirts, posters, etc yet, a la Che. 

Abu Zarqawi: Holy Man

By Robert Spencer
FrontPageMagazine.com | May 31, 2005

While the world media has been consumed with speculation about the health and whereabouts of jihad leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, it has hardly noted at all a challenge he issued just before he was injured. Yet this challenge could in the long run prove to be more potent than the suicide bombings he continues to inspire in Iraq. It came in the form of an audiotape he released on May 20, in which he presents a detailed justification of his operations. His defense unfolds not on prudential, but on theological grounds: making copious reference to Islamic sources, Zarqawi does his best to portray the murderous behavior of his al-Qaida in the Land of the Two Rivers group as legitimate jihad operations that every Muslim should endorse — and cheerfully torpedoes the Leftist dogma that all religions are equal in their capacity to inspire violence.

Since 9/11, American Muslim advocacy groups, influential elements of the government, and the establishment media have gone to great pains to assure us that the 9/11 attacks were perpetrated by a tiny minority of extremists who hijacked a peaceful religion. We were assured that Osama bin Laden and other jihad leaders were not Islamic scholars, and didn’t have an Islamic leg to stand on. The unquestioned assumption has been that the Islamic justifications they presented for their actions were transparently wrong from the mainstream Islamic standpoint. Soon the moderate mainstream would assert itself, we were told, and Muslims would denounce Al-Qaeda and other jihadists, repudiating and isolating them worldwide.

Why hasn’t this happened? Zarqawi’s May 20 communiqué suggests one reason why: it is the jihadists, not the moderates, who are reasoning from Islamic sources and presenting detailed Islamic theological arguments. By doing this, Zarqawi has thrown down the gauntlet to moderate Muslims worldwide, in effect saying to them: defend your vision of Islam or get out of the way. On the tape he criticizes them directly: “the wicked scholars have looked the other way and sold their Deen (religion) for a miserable price in this life.” He notes that one outcome of the present conflict will be to separate “the true believers from the rest.”

Zarqawi helps this process along by fulminating against “the defeatists from our own skin” who “decided to stab the true Mujahideen in the back and throw doubts about the permissibility of their operations.” These people have “in fact directly or indirectly helped the cross worshippers in their campaign against Mujahideen. The defeatists, the unfaithful, and the ill-intentioned people from our own skin, have criticized our operations against the enemies of Allah on the bases that some of these operations results in killing so called ‘innocent civilians.’”

On the contrary, Zarqawi asserts that “the Mujahideen carry out their operations under strict adherence to the rules of engagement as set forth by Allah, His messenger, our prophet Muhammad, and his companions. And why not? After all, the Mujahideen took to the battle fields only to establish the Deen of Allah (Islam), to make the word of Allah high above any others, and to gain the pleasure of Allah.” In his address, therefore, he undertakes to “put forth and clarify the judgment and the rules of Allah’s Sharia’ah (Islamic Jurisprudence) in connection with those incidents in which Muslims are killed as a result rather than the main target of Mujahideen operations.” He warns, however, that he does “not intend to address the legality of martyrdom operations for it has been decided by more than one scholar already.”

Zarqawi’s exposition of Islamic theology as he sees it is most revealing. “There is no doubt,” he says, “that Allah commanded us to strike the Kuffar (unbelievers), kill them, and fight them by all means necessary to achieve the goal. The servants of Allah who perform Jihad to elevate the word (laws) of Allah, are permitted to use any and all means necessary to strike the active unbeliever combatants for the purpose of killing them, snatch their souls from their body, cleanse the earth from their abomination, and lift their trial and persecution of the servants of Allah. The goal must be pursued even if the means to accomplish it affect both the intended active fighters and unintended passive ones such as women, children and any other passive category specified by our jurisprudence.” He is arguing, in other words, that operations such as 9/11 are fully sanctioned by Islamic law.

And that holds true, he argues, even if Muslims are among the victims: “This permissibility extends to situations in which Muslims may get killed if they happen to be with or near the intended enemy, and if it is not possible to avoid hitting them or separate them from the intended Kafirs. Although spilling sacred Muslim blood is a grave offense, it is not only permissible but it is mandated in order to prevent more serious adversity from happening, stalling or abandoning Jihad that is. If one says that we must not allow the killing of Muslims under any circumstance, especially in light of modern war tactics, this means nothing except stalling or permanently abandoning Jihad. This will lead to handing over the land and people to the unbelievers who are full of hate for Islam and Muslims. The unbelievers will have a free hand to humiliate and persecute Islam and Muslims and Muslims will be forced to live by Kafir rules and be treated like slaves. Many Muslims will be pressured or forced to give up their religion, Islam will be altered, modified, and replaced with another form that will be totally different from that which was revealed to the one who was sent with the sword, peace and prayer be upon him.”

In support of his presumably unaltered Islam, Zarqawi quotes the Muslim Prophet Muhammad: “I was ordered to fight people until they bear witness that there is no god but Allah and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah, establish regular prayers, and pay Zakat (purifying charity). If they do, their blood and their wealth become sacred and their fate will be determined by Allah” (Sahih Bukhari, vol. 1, book 2, no. 24).

Zarqawi adds that “there are many Ayat (verses) [of the Qur’an] and Hadith [Islamic traditions] mandating Jihad and warning Muslims of the grave consequences of stalling or abandoning Jihad or staying behind.” He quotes Qur’an 2:191: “And slay them wherever you catch them, and turn them out from where they have turned you out; for persecution is worse than slaughter…” and cites various scholars as explaining the verse to mean that “the state of Kufr [unbelief] or Shirk [idolatry] is worse than the act of killing and worse for the believer than being killed. Therefore, preserving life, or any of the other four essentials at the expense of losing the Deen [religion], is a violation of Allah’s Sharia’ah.” In other words, unbelief is worse than killing, thus Muslims should not hesitate to kill unbelieving noncombatants. He asserts that “it has become known to people of understanding that the consequence of abandoning or stalling Jihad is worse than consequence of practicing it. Practicing Jihad may lead to loss of life and wealth, such and adversity falls under the individual or specific category. However, abandoning Jihad will lead to loss of Deen and life at the level of the entire Ummah [Muslim community].” He cites several Islamic scholars to justify jihad attacks against unbelievers even when those unbelievers are using Muslims as a shield, if “there is no other way of reaching, separating, and killing the Kuffar.”

Zarqawi’s tape amounts to a direct frontal assault on the glib and still oft-repeated assertion that the 9/11 attacks are condemned by Islam because Islam forbids the killing of innocent civilians. It is urgently to be hoped that all those courageous groups that identify themselves as forces for Muslim moderation — Free Muslims and the Center for Islamic Pluralism, as well as professed moderates such as Hussein Ibish and the Council on American Islamic Relations — construct responses to Zarqawi that reason from Islamic principles. For if Islamic moderates convince non-Muslims that Islam is peaceful, those non-Muslims will go home reassured, but that is all: only if the moderates can convince their fellow Muslims of this will there be any weakening of the jihadist initiative. With this audiotape, Zarqawi has seized the intellectual and theological initiative within the global Islamic community, and reinforced the jihadist claim to represent “pure Islam” — a claim that has proved to be a potent recruitment tool among Muslims worldwide, as well as here in the United States. If moderates do not or cannot take that initiative from him, the consequences could reverberate across the world for decades to come.

http://www.frontpagemag.com/Article...le.asp?ID=18242 

Unraveling the Saga of Zarqawi's Injury
By Michael Scheuer

The recent torrent of Internet and print media stories about the wounding and demise, and then the resurrection and return to battle, of al-Qaeda's commander in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, kicked up a great deal of dust but little solid information. After the initial announcement of al-Zarqawi's wounding was circulated on the Internet on May 24, 2005 (posted on www.alhesbah.org among other sites), little has been clear except that he was wounded "lightly," is still fighting, and has reported to Osama bin Laden that all is well with him and the mujahideen in Iraq. What conclusions should be draw from this episode that -- as reported in the Western media -- reeks of melodrama?

Two weeks on there are several conclusions that can be based on the material now available. First, it does indeed seem that al-Zarqawi was wounded in a battle that occurred in May in the area of al-Qaim, near the Syrian border in Iraq. That multi-day engagement featured an offensive near al-Qaim pitting a force of U.S. Marines against the Iraqi Mujahideen, including al-Zarqawi and his group. The media reports that fighting was intense around al-Qaim, and that casualties were heavy: U.S. military spokesmen claim that nine Marines were killed and 40 wounded, while 125 insurgents were killed. No total for insurgent wounded was given, but al-Zarqawi was among them.

Initial reports on 24 May said that al-Zarqawi was shot in a lung and offered little hope for his survival; his organization‘s website soon confirmed the news of his wounding and asked Muslims worldwide to pray for him. (See "Reports of Zarqawi's Injuries Continue amidst Talk about Possible Successor" in Terrorism Focus, Volume II, Issue 10) On May 25, a user by the name of Abu Doujanah al-Tunisi of the "media committee of al-Qaeda in Iraq," posted a statement on an Islamist website reporting that because of the seriousness of Zarqawi's injuries, he had been "temporarily" replaced by Shaykh Abu Hafs al-Qarni, a senior military adviser of al-Qaeda‘s military committee in Iraq. Al-Qaeda quickly shot back with a message that al-Qarni had not replaced al-Zarqawi -- temporarily or otherwise -- but did not clear-up the condition of his health. There the matter stood until al-Qaeda, with its traditional sure flair for surprise and drama, announced on the afternoon of May 30 that al-Zarqawi would speak via tape to Osama bin Laden, a statement that was advertised as "A Message from a Soldier to His Commander." [1]

Al-Zarqawi's message to bin Laden suggests that the former took advantage of his injury to achieve at least six important objectives:

1) Zarqawi acted to assure his own fighters and al-Qaeda's supporters around the world that he was physically able to continue the war. Following al-Qaeda's tradition, neither the group nor al-Zarqawi himself sought to hide his wounding; saying "my wounds are light" and all other reports "which left minds boggled … are sheer rumors, which are baseless." It also seems likely that the confusion over whether al-Qaeda had named a temporary commander to replace al-Zarqawi arose more from the difficulties of communicating inside Iraq than from a deliberate effort to misinform. Parenthetically, al-Qaida's ability to handle al-Zarqawi's wounding deftly, and then exploit it for propaganda successes, speak volumes about the quickly developed quality and physical security of al-Zarqawi's media apparatus.

2) Zarqawi used his message to bin Laden to tie his wounding to the recent battle between insurgents and the U.S. Marines in al-Qaim. Al-Qaeda has long identified the Marines as the only courageous and respectable U.S. fighters, and al-Zarqawi focused attention on the battle against the Marines at al-Qaim, describing it "as one of the greatest battles of Islam." "O beloved commander [bin Laden]," al- Zarqawi wrote, "your soldiers are, by the grace of God, writing remarkable chapters about sacrifice and the defense of religion and the honor of Muslims in the city of al-Qaim…." While the Marines cleared al-Qaim area, al-Zarqawi used the survival of his forces as evidence of victory, a tactic al-Qaeda consistently employs in the media to show Muslims that its fighters can battle the best American forces and survive. "Al-Qaim," al-Zarqawi told Muslims, "is the battleground and arena of men; the legend of the Marines collapsed in it… The goals of their crusade vanished at the gates of al-Qaim"

3) Zarqawi also told the Muslim world about the developing cooperation among insurgents groups in Iraq. He explained that in the fighting at al-Qaim, insurgent forces included the "Muhajiroun" (emigrants) -- fighters who came to Iraq from other Muslim countries -- and the "al-Ansar" (supporters), from among the native Iraqi insurgents. This is an important issue for the West to watch because, if true, it suggests that non-Iraqi fighters are integrating with native Iraqis at a rate that far exceeds that at which Arab fighters integrated with the Afghan mujahideen during the jihad against the Soviets. The language employed by Zarqawi also seems intended to evoke the setting of the first Muslim community in Medina, which was similarly made up of al-Ansar and Muhajiroun. Interestingly, Zarqawi's statements also appeal to the modern takfir wal-hijra ideology, which calls for a period of isolation from unbelievers and a hijra, or emigration, to create a pure community, as occurred for the earlier generation of mujahideen in Afghanistan. Whether Iraq will become a long-term training ground and safe haven for mujahideen is yet to be determined, but a higher rate of foreign fighters entering Iraq to join the insurgency will certainly bolster the community of mujahideen for the short-term.

4) Al-Zarqawi's message to bin Laden also again acknowledged the rules that bin Laden laid down for attacks on Muslims in Iraq; that is, such attacks are permissible under Islamic law if they are aimed at Muslims supporting the foreign and infidel occupying power. Al-Zarqawi explained his attacks on Shi'as and Kurds were religiously justified because these peoples were lead by Shi'a Ayatollah al-Sistani, who was supporting the U.S.-dominated regime and thus is the "leader of infidelity and heresy," and by Kurdish leader Jalal Talabani, who was likewise assisting the U.S. coalition and so had made himself into an "enemy of God and a "Zio-American." Al-Zarqawi strongly implied that Iraqis taking direction from al-Sistani and Talabani would be regarded by al-Qaeda as heretics and enemies.

5) Al-Zarqawi's message also underscored his status as bin Laden's lieutenant, not his equal or rival. From the opening line -- "From a soldier standing in the line of fire … to his gracious commander" -- al-Zarqawi made clear his allegiance to bin Laden, and prayed that God "protect you and give you a long life and make you a thorn in the side of your enemies and grant you martyrdom in the end. We are awaiting your orders and instructions." Al-Zarqawi even implied that his forces fought the U.S. Marines to avenge the recent loss of a senior member of bin Laden's inner circle. "O our Shaykh [bin Laden]," al-Zarqawi wrote, "if the Byzantine dog Bush was pleased by the arrest of our brother Abu-al-Faraj al-Libi, he was disturbed by what happened to his soldiers at al-Qaim and elsewhere in the Land of the Two Rivers [Iraq]."

6) Al-Zarqawi concluded his message with an attempt to increase U.S. anxiety about al-Qaeda's future plans in Iraq. Al-Zarqawi told bin Laden that "I think the plan that was drawn up has reached you or is on its way to you," adding that "the enemy, praise be to God, is proceeding as was planned for it. We, praise be to God, are about to tighten the noose on it." Al-Zarqawi thus left doubt in his readers' minds: are his activities in Iraq part of a larger, near-term al-Qaeda attack plan, or was he simply trying to "terrorize" his foes? The brilliant analyst Bruce Hoffman has described al-Zarqawi as a "master of disinformation," [2] and no small part of the brilliance is leaving substantial doubt in his enemies' mind about what al-Qaeda has on tap.

And there may still be another shoe to drop in the al-Zarqawi saga. His message to bin Laden gives al-Qaeda's overall chief an excellent opportunity to respond, both to congratulate al-Zarqwai on his personal survival and his "success" against the U.S. Marines, and to exploit the uncertainty created by al-Zarqawi's reference to the attack plan that "was drawn up... and has reached you or is on its way to you." In this context, it seems fair to conclude that al-Zarqawi and his media committee succeeded in turning his wounding to the clear advantage of the Iraqi insurgency and Osama bin Laden.

Notes

1. Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, "A Message from a Soldier to his Commander," lajnah22m3.co.uk/forums, 30 May 05. (All quotes in the rest of the article are from this document except for note 2 below.)

2. Katherine Schrader, "Search for al-Zarqawi Highlights Problems," AP, 31 May 2005.

http://jamestown.org/terrorism/news...ticleid=2369720 

IRAQ: AL-ZARQAWI ISSUES VIDEO-HISTORY OF HIS TERROR GROUP

Baghdad, 27 July (AKI) - In the propaganda war waged in parallel to the bloody attacks by Jihadi terrorists around the globe, the Internet and video images are paramount. The latest salvo from Jordanian terror chief, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, is a 46-minute video, of which Adnkronos International (AKI) has a copy. Entitled "Religion is all for Allah" the mini-documentary, recaps the terrorist activity perpetrated in recent years by the organisation of al-Qaeda in Iraq. Unlike the grainy amateurish videos issued by Iraqi terrorist groups two years ago, the latest 'film' has high production values and is technically sophisticated.

The images are accompanied for the most part by a voice speaking in Arabic which viewers are told is that of al-Zarqawi, alternated with Jihadist songs and the original sounds from some of the scenes shown. In some parts the narrator's voice is accompanied by archive images of attacks or explanatory texts in Arabic on the screen.


Evan Kohlmann, terror expert and director of globalterroralert.com, described the video which has been on Islamist sites over the past 24 hours, as "recent" and that the narrator is indeed al-Zarqawi. According to Kohlmann, the video includes some previoulsy unreleased footage.

The video opens with high definition images of Osama bin Laden walking through the mountains in Afghanistan. At the fourth minute the narrator says: "The crusader armies have been taken prisoner in Iraq and the head of the crusaders [the US president George W. Bush] made an error when, in 2003, he announced the end of the war in Iraq, because it has only just begun".

Six minutes into the video, a compedium of images of al-Zarqawi's group, al-Qaeda in Iraq, most serious attacks appears, including one on an Italian base in the southern city of Nassiriya, in which 19 people were killed.

"Then came the Nassiriya expedition in which the crusaders base was destroyed and their prime minister shed tears over its desruction". Al-Zarqawi's group had claimed responsibility for the November 2003 attack on one previous occasion. This segment is accompanied by video footage of the devastated base and of Berlusconi with his head in his hands.

The mujahadeen have turned Iraq into an inferno, the narrator informs, with a series of attacks, including "the destruction of the UN headquarters which protected Jews and that of the Red Cross".

The video-history of al-Zarqawi's group continues with quotations from a Human Rights Watch report on Iraq and on torture in Iraqi jails. It shows the interrogation of an Iraqi policeman and it attacks the Iraqi Al-Iraqiya television channel which it says is "funded by the United States and by Jews to transmit false videos of Mujahadeen turncoats".

The final part of the video shows videos shot by the insurgents themselves during various attacks. One shows US soldiers in combat and the images shown suggest that whoever recorded the footage was remarkably close to the troops.

A group of 20 young suicide bombers, the testimony of a Falluja woman who claims she was beaten by the police and the video-will of a Saudi suicide bomber conclude the video document.

http://www.adnki.com/index_2Level.p...191415550&par=0 

"Abu Mohammed al Maqdisi: al-Zarqawi "Spiritual Godfather""

By Mshari Al-Zaydi

Abu Mohammed al Maqdisi, born in 1962, has, once again, made the headlines of extremist news bulletins and amongst followers of the Salafi movement (following the methods of the early Muslims) who espouse jihad (holy struggle) and of which he can be considered “the Godfather”.

Al Maqdisi was born Isam Mohammed Taher al Barqawi, and not Asim, Mohammed Asim, or Mohammed Islam as some might believe, in Barqa, near the city of Nablus , in the Palestine . The surname Maqdisi is in reference to Bayt al Maqdis or Haram al Sharif (the Temple Mount ). He later added the title al Utaybi when signing some of his books.

I remember reading a hand-written copy of al Maqdisi’s well-known book “The Faith of Ibrahim” which he signed “Abu Mohammed isam bin Taher al Barqawi al Hafi al Utaybi al Maqdisi”, mixing his appropriated titles. The title al Utaybi is common around Barqa according to renowned Palestinian intellectual Dr. Ahmad Barqawi. Barqawi however, is a very different surname to al Hafi, each representing a distinct tribe. Some observers believe using the title al Utaybi is an attempt by al Maqdisi to establish ties with Saudi Arabia.

Whatever the name, Abu Mohammed al Maqdisi was born in the Occupied Territories but grew up in Kuwait where his family emigrated, like so many other Palestinian families did, during the 1960s and 1970s. At the time, many political groups were active in the Gulf Emirates, most notably pan-Arab and leftist groups. However, a small group of Islamists, known al Ahl al Hadith (Followers of the sayings of the Prophet) flourished. Members followed a puritanical approach and decided to consult the Prophet’s sayings in a methodical, puritanical manner. The supporters of Saudi Juhayman al Utaibi who occupied the Grand Mosque in Mecca in 1979 inspired the group.

The pronouncements of Juhayman and his group of “brothers” were published in Kuwait by the Dar al Taliah al Taqadumiyah (Progressive Vanguard) Publishing. One of the closest supporters of the Saudi fundamentalist was Abdel Latif al Dirbas, also known as Abu Hazza, jailed for several years in the wake of the Mecca attack and forcibly returned to Kuwait after his release.

Abu Hazza was al Maqdisi’s brother in-law, since both men married sisters. At the time, al Maqdisi was affiliated with Ahl al Hadith who did not yet sanction jihad and violent confrontation. This emphasis on theory stayed with al Maqdisi throughout his life; he was a man of words and not of the sword. This was in sharp opposition to his Jordanian student, Ahmad al Khalayleh, better known as Abu Musab al Zarqawi.

Al Maqdisi disagreed sharply with other Islamist in Kuwait , especially as he branded many individuals as infidels. He was an extremist who demanded his supporters resign from government jobs and withdraw their children from mainstream schools. Abu Hazza tried to reconcile al Maqdisi with other Islamists. After Saddam Hussein invaded Iraq , al Maqdisi wrote a book, “How to Raise Leading Knights by Abandoning Corrupt Schools”, where he attacked government schools comparing them to works by the devil.

His first mention in Saudi fundamentalist milieus came after he published a book in support of a Salafi cleric from the city of Buraidah , the capital of the Qasim in the centre of the Kingdom, Abdullah al Duwaish who died in the 1990s. The cleric had criticized Sayyid Qutb, the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, for failing to abide by Ibh Hanbal’s strict criteria in a book, “In the Shadows of the Quran.” This bold move by had angered many, in Kuwait and abroad.

It is important, at this point in the discussion, to ask ourselves if al Maqdisi identified with the Muslim Brotherhood before breaking away from the group, or was he a mere observer who was familiar with their writings? Reading the book where he supports the breakaway Saudi cleric, one realized al Maqdisi was well versed in the Muslim Brotherhood’s literature. His criticism was based on a deep knowledge, resembling that of Ayman al Zawahiri in his book “The Bitter Harvest”.

It remains to be seen how close al Maqdisi identified with the group. What is certain, however, is that the Palestinian lived in an environment influenced by the Brotherhood, identifying closely with Juhayman because of his fiery tempter, drastic solutions, and Salafi tendencies.

As the arguments with supporters in Kuwait grew more frequent, al Maqdisi moved to Saudi Arabia , after the Iraqi invasion, where he lived for a short period, before returning to Jordan .

I met him in 1989, before he moved to the Kingdom, in Mecca , while he was visiting to perform the Umrah (short pilgrimage performed by Muslims anytime of the year), surrounded by a group of young men. We spoke briefly. I remember him an energetic, intelligent man, eager to promote his views to the young men who gathered around him. He had memorized many religious texts and built strong arguments, referring to these texts when he wished, especially with regard to the concepts of loyalty and disavowal, according to the Salafi interpretation.

The concept of loyalty and disavowal is one of the pillars of al Maqdisi’s thought and his favorite argument. He used it in conjunction with extracts from the Quran, the Hadith (sayings of the Prophet), Salafi teachings and the fatwas (religious edicts) of Wahabi clerics ( strict orthodox Sunni Muslims from Saudi Arabia who strive to purify Islamic beliefs and reject any innovation occurring after the 3rd century of Islam). Al Maqdisi’s use of the concept was best displayed in his famous book, ““The Faith of Ibrahim”, his most significant representation of Salafi ideology. The book is similar to Sayyid Qutb’s “Milestones” in terms of its impact on Salafi ideology. Based on a simple idea, the book advocates following the path set by the Prophet Ibrahim, because God ordered his followers to take Ibrahim as a model in the Koranic verse: “You have a good example in Ibrahim and those who were with him. They said to their people, we disavow you because what you idolize is different than Allah.”

As such, following the way of Ibrahim requires disbelieving the devil and disavowing him. The devil’s infidelity can be seen in several ways, mainly in the fact that he does not rule according to God’s ordinance. A verse in the Quran says, “Those who do not follow Allah’s revelation in their rule are infidels.” According to al Maqdisi, since all Arab governments do not rule by God’s edict, they are all infidels and need to be disavowed, as the Prophet Ibrahim did before.

The book had a powerful impact in a generation of jihadist men. Al Maqdisi, using seemingly obvious religious language and texts, motivated a number of young Muslim men and incite them to commit violence. This was best illustrated by the al Ulya explosions in Riyadh , in November 1995, when a group blew up a training center for the Saudi National Guard. Abd al Aziz al Muthim who masterminded the attack had been traveling frequently to Jordan and bringing back with him al Maqdisi’s books, listening to his teachings, and promoting his ideas. The Palestinian cleric himself paid a few visits to the Kingdom, even after he wrote “Conspicuous Manifestations of the Saudi State ’s Infidelity” where he unequivocally denounced the Kingdom’s government.

Al Muthim and his companions were the early fruits of al Maqdisi’s tree. It is hard to believe the Palestinian when he denied, in his latest interview, ever encouraging the Saudi extremist to commit violence. Al Muthim must have acted after becoming convinced by the takfir (declaring someone as an unbeliever)ideology which al Maqdisi loaded in his rifle, placing his finger on the trigger, and then saying stop.

Previosuly, al Maqdisi had traveled to Afghanistan and visited Pakistan , where he is thought to have met Zarqawi for the first time, in Peshawar . It is during his trip to Central Asia that the Palestinian cleric wrote his book on the infidelity of Saudi Arabia ’s government. The manual was widely distributed and smuggled into the Kingdom. Sources tell me the mosque affiliated by the Kuwaiti Red Crescent in the Pakistani city served as a distribution center. In total, three editions were printed.

To find our more about his relationship with Zarqawi, let us refer back to extracts from a message al Maqdisi smuggled out of his Jordanian jail, in Qafqafa, around July 2004, which was widely circulated in fundamentalist circles. In the message entitled “Support and Advice, Pains and Hopes”, he speaks about getting to know the Jordanian terrorist. “I met Abu Musab by accident in Peshawar at the house of Abu al Walid al Ansari, in the early 1990s. I had never seen him before. On his return from Central Asia , he visited me and was eager to celebrate the triumphs of Islam.”

Both men worked closely together, with al Zarqawi promoting his books and learning under him quickly. In 1995, they founded the Bayat al Imam Organization (Pledging Allegiance to the Imam), in the Jordanian city of Zarqa, a stronghold of the Salafi jihadist trend. He was subsequently arrested and sentenced for 15 years behind bars. He was pardoned by royal decree and freed in 1999, after which he left to Afghanistan .

In prison, al Zarqawi showed his true talents beyond his mentor’s abilities. Al Maqdici then handed him the Imarah (leadership) and the task of managing the group’s affairs, as is mentioned in the smuggled message. Al Zarqawi was resilient and did not let incarceration break him down. He was even critical of his mentor’s leniency with prison guards.

After his release, al Zarqawi traveled to Afghanistan where he met Saif al Adl, believed to be the nom de guerre of of former Egyptian Army Colonel Mohammed Ibrahim Makkawi, thought to be the third ranking member in the organization), Ayman al Zawahiri, and Osama bin Laden. He joined forced with al Qaeda and set up a training camp in Heart, in western Afghanistan, later entering Iraq through Iran, to eventually become the leader of “”al Qaeda Organization in the Land of Two Rivers”, in reference to the two rivers, the Tigris and the Euphrates that run through Iraq. Meanwhile, al Maqdisi was monitoring the activities of his disciple, until he openly called in his message from jail, to concentrate on attacking the US military and the nascent Iraqi government and avoid killing Shiaa and other civilians. The cleric preferred to concentrate the efforts of militant groups and preserve their capabilities. He also criticized Abu Musab for sending his theorist, Abu Anas al Shami, also known as Omar Yousef Jumaa, another disciple of al Maqdisi, to carry out an operation in the West of Baghdad. The latter was killed by US forces.

Despite the presence of other peddlers of extremist thought, such as Abu Qatadah, Abu Halima, Abu Basir, and many others, al Maqdisi remains on the most danferous and most active theorists of the militarized Salafi trend. The one who is applying the theory appears to be more stringent than its author, as is the case with al Zarqawi, al Muthim, and Abd al Aziz al Muqrin, all students of the Palestinian cleric.

http://aawsat.com/english/news.asp?id=968 

Ian, are you a provocateur? This material is very insensitive. We must remember who invented algebra.