Osama bin Laden's deputy has sent a letter to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the militant leader in Iraq, setting out a blueprint for taking control of the country when US troops leave, according to US intelligence officials.
The plans are set out in a 6,000-word letter dated July 9 this year from Ayman al-Zawahiri, the Egyptian-born doctor who is regarded as al-Qaeda's second-in-command.
The existence of the letter to Zarqawi was disclosed by the US last week, but its full contents have only now been made public. The office of the director of national intelligence in Washington, which posted the letter on its Web site, has given no details of how it fell into US hands beyond saying it had been "obtained during counterterrorism operations in Iraq."
"This lengthy document provides a comprehensive view of al-Qaeda's strategy in Iraq and globally," the director's office said.
"The document has not been edited in any way and is released in its entirety in both the Arabic and English translated forms. The US government has the highest confidence in the letter's authenticity."
The letter sets out a four-step plan beginning with the expulsion of US forces from Iraq, followed by the establishment of "an Islamic authority or amirate" covering as much Iraqi territory as possible.
The third stage would "extend the jihad wave to the secular countries neighboring Iraq." Finally, would come "the clash with Israel, because Israel was established only to challenge any new Islamic entity," the letter says.
Although the tone of the letter is polite and respectful, it hints at disagreements on tactics between Zarqawi and the original al-Qaeda leadership, and might be interpreted as a gentle reprimand.
The writer warns Zarqawi that he risks alienating Muslim opinion with gruesome killings of fellow-believers at a time when al-Qaeda in Iraq should be seeking popular support for a new religious state.
"It is imperative that, in addition to force, there also be an appeasement of Muslims and more sharing with them in governance," al-Zawahiri says.
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