It was Osama bin Laden’s deputy Ayman Al-Zawahiri, and not a little-known Al-Qaeda leader as was widely reported, who lashed out against India in the tape released last week blaming “Hindu rulers” for “killing more than 100,000 Muslims” in Kashmir with the “blessings and patronage of America.”
This has been confirmed by the government after a detailed assessment of the tape — which runs an hour and 17 minutes — by security agencies.
According to the assessment — which also confirmed the authenticity of the tape — Zawahiri speaks in Arabic and another Al-Qaeda leader, Adam Gadahn, slams the West in English. India is equated with Russia, US and Israel as an axis against which Al-Qaeda will carry out attacks. The tape is said to make an explicit threat against Hindus in Kashmir and, for the first time, contains visuals of “Hindu rallies” to make its case.
The fact that Zawahiri has mentioned Kashmir, sources said, suddenly raises the level of the threat. Among the founders of Al-Qaeda, Zawahiri joined the radical jihadi movement in Egypt and then rose to be Osama’s trusted lieutenant. Recent reports indicate that he has only grown more powerful in the Al-Qaeda and for that reason, sources said, a threat from him needs to be taken “very seriously”.
What is also worrying is another unidentified voice in the background naming Indian missions in Kabul, Kandahar and Jalalabad for their “alleged machinations” in supporting the American action in Afghanistan. This voice speaks in Arabic as the visuals of Afghanistan are shown.
... contd.
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