A website statement signed in the name of the usual poster for al-Qaida in Iraq today denied the militant group has appointed a deputy to take the lead until Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who has reportedly been wounded, returns.

A British-born terror suspect was asked by senior al-Qaida figures in Afghanistan to recruit Australian Muslims to be trained in explosives and sniper techniques, a court heard today.

The group which has claimed responsibility for the attacks in Madrid is believed to be affiliated to al-Qaida.

US forces in Afghanistan are now focused on destroying remaining pockets of Taliban and al-Qaida resistance, rather than hunting down Osama bin Laden and other individuals.