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Al Qaeda’s Zawahiri urges attacks on Western targets in north Africa

DUBAI (AFP) — Al-Qaeda number two Ayman al-Zawahiri called for a holy war against North African leaders and their French, Spanish and US allies in an audiotape message Saturday in which he announced a new Libyan arm of the militant network.

In the message released on the internet, he also called on members of Mahmud Abbas’s Fatah movement to overthrow the Palestinian president, saying he had turned the movement into an “annex of the CIA”.

He urged militants to target US, French and Spanish interests in North African countries in the recording, the authenticity of which could not immediately be verified.

“Islamic nation of resistance and jihad (holy war) in the Maghreb, see how your children are uniting under the banner of Islam and jihad against the United States, France and Spain,” Zawahiri said.

He also called for the overthrow of the leaders of Libya, Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco over their support for Washington’s so-called war on terror.

“Support... your children in fighting our enemies and cleansing our lands of their slaves (Moamer) Kadhafi, Zine El Abidine (Ben Ali), (President Abdelaziz) Bouteflika and (King) Mohammed VI,” he said.

Zawahiri, the Egyptian lieutenant of Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, also focused on Palestinian leader Abbas as the Fatah leader prepares for a US-sponsored international peace meeting on the Middle East next month. SNIP

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