Al-Qaida claims to have killed kidnapped Egyptian envoy

Al-Qaida in Iraq said in a web posting today that it had killed Egypt’s top envoy in Iraq, showing a video of the blindfolded diplomat identifying himself. The video did not show his death.

A statement purportedly from al-Qaida said it delayed claiming responsibility for the Saturday abduction of Ihab al-Sherif “to be able to capture as many ambassadors as we can”.