"Al-Qaida in Iraq's council has agreed on Sheik Abu Hamza al-Muhajer to be
the successor of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in the leadership of the organization,"
the group said.
The authenticity of the statement could not be independently confirmed. It
was posted on an Islamic militant Web forum where al-Qaida in Iraq often posts
messages.
The posting said al-Muhajer was "a beloved brother with jihadi (holy war)
experience and a strong footing in knowledge.
"We ask Almighty God to strengthen him that he may accomplish what Abu Musab
al-Zarqawi, God have mercy on his soul, began," it said.
That could mean he will continue the strategy the Jordanian-born al-Zarqawi
followed: a campaign of brutal attacks on Shiite civilians, aimed at sparking a
Sunni-Shiite civil war.
The attacks sparked tensions between al-Zarqawi's group and some Iraqi
insurgents who felt the bloodshed hurt the image of their resistance against
U.S. forces. They wanted to focus attacks on American and Iraqi troops.
Iraqi insurgents loyal to Saddam Hussein made a rare public acknowledgment of
disputes with al-Zarqawi in a condolence letter posted on the same Web site.
"Although there were many matters we differed with him on and him with us,
... what united us was something greater," said the statement by the Fedayeen
Saddam. It said the group had "the honor" of fighting alongside al-Zarqawi and
that "our determination is only increased for waging jihad."
Al-Zarqawi's death raised speculation the group might turn to an Iraqi leader
to smooth over the differences with Iraqis. Al-Zarqawi's deputy is an Iraqi
known as Abu Abdul-Rahman al-Iraqi. The U.S. military told The Associated Press
on Monday that he was not a man identified as "Abdul-Rahman" who was killed with
al-Zarqawi.
The name al-Muhajer, Arabic for "immigrant," suggested the new leader was not
Iraqi. The name is often used by foreign Arab militants, referring to the
"muhajereen," Islam's early converts who fled persecution in Mecca to join the
Prophet Muhammad in Medina.
Rohan Gunaratna, a terror expert at Singapore's Institute of Defense and
Strategic Studies, said the choice of a non-Iraqi means the group is "likely to
continue the foreign operations."
Al-Zarqawi had sought to expand his campaign beyond Iraq, including a triple
suicide bombing against hotels in Jordan last November that killed 60 people.
Al-Zarqawi also had links to al-Qaida's branch in Saudi Arabia, which in a
statement Monday thanked him for helping its fight against the kingdom's rulers.
"We will not forget his favors to jihad and the mujahedeen in the prophet's
peninsula," the group said.
The U.S. military had predicted a militant named Abu Ayyub al-Masri would
become al-Qaida in Iraq's leader. Al-Masri, an Egyptian associate of al-Zarqawi,
has a $50,000 reward on his head.
Militants usually adopt a pseudonym made up of a nickname called a "kunya" in
Arabic - "Abu," meaning "father of," plus a name that sometimes refers to
an actual child of the militant. The second part of the pseudonym is usually an
adjective denoting the militant's nationality.
Al-Zarqawi was born Ahmad Fadhil Nazzal al-Khalayleh, but took a pseudonym
from Zarqa, his hometown in Jordan. He had a child named Musab, so took the
kunya of "Abu Musab."
The secrecy surrounding the new leader could hurt the group's ability to
carry out attacks, said Egyptian analyst Diaa Rashwan. Al-Zarqawi built a
reputation as a holy warrior, helping draw foreign militants to carry out
suicide bombings.
"Al-Zarqawi's charisma was very important factor for many to join his
organization," Rashwan said. "All al-Zarqawi had was car bombs and people ready
to blow themselves up."
"My feeling is that they are going to have establish a persona for him," said
Evan Kohlmann, a New York-based terror consultant and founder of
globalterroralert.com. "They're going to have to introduce this fellow to the
world."
