Al-Qaida's No. 2 urges holy war over Gaza Strip
CAIRO, Egypt (AP) - June 5, 2008 In the 11-minute tape, a voice purportedly belonging to Ayman
al-Zawahri says in Arabic that the "salvation of the Muslim nation
is through the march of its sons on the path of jihad."
An accompanying banner says the message was issued to mark the
41st anniversary of the 1967 Arab-Israeli war, during which Egypt
lost the Gaza Strip and Sinai Peninsula, Syria lost the Golan
Heights and Jordan lost the West Bank and east Jerusalem.
Trying to minimize the shock of the defeat, Arabs have long
called the war the "naksa" - "setback" in Arabic - but it
remains a deep wound.
In al-Zawahri's recording, titled "In Memory of the Naksa ...
Break the Siege of Gaza," Osama bin Laden's deputy blames Arab
regimes for the 1967 defeat. He says Arab governments were
"impotent and unable to protect the Muslim nation, its sanctuaries
and its wealth."
"The sons of the nation should break the shackles of the
treacherous regimes and move to wage jihad, which has become a
duty," al-Zawahri says.
The tape follows a audio message from Bin Laden on May 18 in
which he criticized Arab states for not waging war against Israel.
Al-Zawahri's message seemed especially directed at Hamas, the
Islamic militant group that seized control of the Gaza Strip last
June in fighting with supporters of Palestinian President Mahmoud
Abbas. Abbas' government is now based in the West Bank, leaving the
Palestinian territories split.
Hamas' seizure of Gaza and its near daily firing of rockets at
towns in southern Israel has prompted Israel to impose a blockade
on the strip and mount airstrikes and occasional ground operations
in Gaza.
Al-Zawahri lashes out at Egyptian authorities in his new
message, declaring Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and his troops
"criminal traitors" for perpetuating Israel's blockade by sealing
its own boundary with Gaza.
"You have the right to enter Egypt whenever you like and
destroy the treacherous siege," al-Zawahri tells Gazans. "Those
who confront you should not blame anyone but themselves."
Just hours before al-Zawahri's message was released, Abbas
called for renewed dialogue with Hamas.
Al-Zawahri often issues audio and video recordings, speaking on
a wide range of topics. He has frequently discussed Palestinian
issues.