Al-Qaida's No. 2 Leader Threatens Attacks

In a frame from a video provided by IntelCenter, posted on the Internet Thursday, April 13, 2006, Al-Qaida's deputy leader Ayman al-Zawahri praises insurgents in Iraq. Al-Qaida's no. 2 leader on Thursday warned that the terrorist group would not stand idly by while "these (Israeli) shells burn our brothers" in Lebanon and Gaza. In a taped message broadcast by al-Jazeera television, Ayman al-Zawahri, second in command to Osama bin Laden, said al-Qaida now saw "all the world as a battlefield open in front of us." (AP Photo/ HO/ IntelCenter ) (AP)

CAIRO, Egypt -- Al-Qaida's No. 2 leader called Thursday for Muslims to unite in a holy war against Israel and to join the fighting in Lebanon and Gaza until Islam reigns from "Spain to Iraq."

Ayman al-Zawahri's taped message, the first from al-Qaida since Israel began offensives against Hezbollah guerrillas in Lebanon and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip, was a sweeping recruiting effort that even called on non-Muslims to join the Islamic cause.

Addressing the world's "downtrodden," al-Zawahri said non-Muslims should join Islamic militants in the battle against "tyrannical Western civilization and its leader, America."

"Stand with Muslims in confronting this unprecedented oppression and tyranny. Stand with us as we stand with you against this injustice that was forbidden by God in his book (the Quran)," al-Zawahri said.

Kamal Habib, a former member of Egypt's Islamic Jihad militant group who was jailed from 1981-1991 along with al-Zawahri, said the appeal to non-Muslims was unprecedented and reflected a change in tactics.

"This is a transformation in the vision of al-Qaida and its struggle with the United States. It is now trying to unite Sunni Muslims, Shiite Muslims and calling for non-Muslims to join the fight," he said.

But the Egyptian-born militant saved most of his vitriol for Israel.

"The war with Israel does not depend on cease-fires ... . It is a jihad (holy war) for the sake of God and will last until (our) religion prevails ... from Spain to Iraq," said al-Zawahri. "We will attack everywhere."

The White House dismissed the tape as propaganda aimed at inciting violence.

"It is hardly new for Mr. al-Zawahri, from his place in hiding, to issue threats," White House spokesman Tony Snow said. "One of the weapons is to use the media, and use the Internet and use mass communications as a way of fomenting hatred and encouraging violence, and this certainly fits into that pattern."

"Al-Qaida's military's capabilities have been significantly degraded and everybody knows that, and so now Ayman al-Zawahri is issuing tapes," Snow added.

Al-Zawahri said al-Qaida planned to attack opponents wherever vulnerable.