Al-Qaida site says al-Zarqawi injured

The most-wanted terrorist in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, has been injured, and a statement attributed to his militant group asked Muslims to pray for his recovery, an internet posting said today.

The statement’s authenticity could not be verified, but it was posted on a website known for carrying prior statements by al-Qaida in Iraq and other militant groups.

The statement, which purportedly was from the group’s media co-ordinator, Abu Maysarah al-Iraqi, did not say how or when al-Zarqawi was injured.

Al-Iraqi is known to be the group’s media co-ordinator, but there was no way to confirm if the statement was true or that it was posted by al-Qaida in Iraq.

Al-Zarqawi, a Jordanian, has claimed responsibility for attacks on Iraqi civilians and security forces, kidnappings and beheadings of foreigners, and has a £13.6m (€19.8m) bounty on his head – the same as for al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden.

“Let the near and far know that the injury of our leader is an honour, and a cause to close in on the enemies of God, and a reason to increase the attacks against them,” the statement said.

There were media reports earlier this month that the US military was investigating whether al-Zarqawi was at a Ramadi hospital and whether he was ill or wounded. These reports were never confirmed.

The Jordanian born al-Zarqawi reportedly met with his lieutenants in Syria last month and ordered a hike in attacks to follow the installation of the newly elected Iraqi government.

A senior US military official said al-Zarqawi and his key militant leadership have met at least five times in foreign countries during the conflict, most recently during the past 30 days in Syria.

At the time al-Qaida denied al-Zarqawi went to Syria. It was unusual for the group and its media spokespeople to speak out about the condition of its leader and his likely whereabouts.

Last week, a tape recorded by al-Zarqawi surfaced in which he denounced Iraq’s Shiites as US collaborators and justified killing them.

“God ordered us to attack the infidels by all means … even if armed infidels and unintended victims – women and children – are killed together,” said the speaker purported to be al-Zarqawi. “The priority is for jihad (holy war), so anything that slows down jihad should be overcome.”

The statement posted today ended with prayers for al-Zarqawi, calling on the nation of Islam to “pray for our Sheik Abu Musab al-Zarqawi to recover from an injury he suffered for God’s sake".