Al-Qaida denies plotting chemical weapons attack

A purported message from senior al-Qaida mastermind Abu-Musab al-Zarqawi today said the terror network did not plan a chemical weapons attack as Jordan has claimed.

“The (allegation) that there was a chemical bomb to kill thousands of people is a mere lie,” the reported voice of al-Zarqawi said on a tape broadcast via an Islamic website.

“God knows, if we did possess (a chemical bomb), we wouldn’t hesitate one second to use it to hit Israeli cities such as Eilat and Tel Aviv,” the voice said.

Jordanian state television has broadcast confessions of a group of men allegedly linked to al-Zarqawi who said they were plotting al-Qaida’s first chemical bomb attack.

It was to have been directed against Jordan’s secret service building in Amman.

The broadcast commentator said the suspects had prepared enough explosives to kill 80,000 people.

But al-Zarqawi said his group did plan to attack the Jordanian intelligence building, calling it “the source of all evils in our home".

The voice could not be immediately authenticated as that of al-Zarqawi, a Jordanian wanted by the United States for allegedly organising terrorists to fighting Iraq on behalf of al-Qaida.

Washington has offered a $10m (€8.4m) reward for his capture.