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Zarqawi web post decries insurgent sweep
The al-Qaida leader in Iraq purportedly criticized U.S. and Iraqi forces for recent fighting in northern Iraq, where hundreds of insurgents were killed or captured, and urged his fighters to prepare for a "final" battle in an audiotape posted Sunday on the Internet, AP reported. The recording attributed to Abu-Musab al-Zarqawi claimed that the insurgents inflicted casualties on the allied troops in the Tal Afar battle. U.S. and Iraqi forces attacked the insurgent stronghold on Saturday and by Sunday night reported 156 militants were killed and 246 captured. "The Crusaders mobilized their big armies and used the most destructive and lethal weapons and the most deadly and hurtful poison gas together with their stooges," he said. "But God made them drink at the hands of the mujahedeen the different kinds of death and made them face horrible things that they will never forget." The voice could not be authenticated, however it was similar to previous recordings attributed to the Jordanian-born al-Zarqawi. The tape was posted on an Islamic Web site often used as a clearinghouse for militant statements. U.S. officials could not immediately be reached for comment, but the Americans have consistently denied using poison gas in warfare. The man on the audio recording urged his fighters to be ready for a "final" battle and show no kindness to the Americans, whom he called "cowards who always seek to run away." He also referred to Iraqi effort to adopt a new constitution that their U.S. backers hope will be a step toward stabilizing the security situation in Iraq and allowing foreign troops to withdraw. "Your enemy is now witnessing his worst days on the land of Iraq, seeking to get out of it but he can't find the way out; trying to get out of the swamp through the oppressive constitution," the speaker said. "Be aware and keep your fingers on the triggers. The final and decisive battle is approaching and we are determined to uproot them and make them taste the horrors of the battle," he added. The speaker also called the Hurricane Katrina disaster in the United States an answer to prayers. "The hurricane was the result of a prayer from a father who lost his son or from a woman assaulted in the land of Iraq or Afghanistan. Heaven's door was opened and the response came from God," he said.
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