Al-Zarqawi killed in US airstrike

Al-Zarqawi killed in US airstrike - NDTV.com - News on Al-Zarqawi killed in US airstrike: "Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the most wanted terrorist in Iraq, is dead. The Jordanian-born leader of al-Qaida was killed in a US air raid near Baghdad. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said al-Zarqawi was killed along with seven aides yesterday in a house 50 kilometers northeast of Baghdad, in the volatile province of Diyala, just east of the provincial capital of Baqouba, al-Maliki said.

His body has been identified by fingerprints and facial recognition. Al-Zarqawi spent his youth as a petty criminal in Jordan, but like Osama bin Laden became radicalised by his experience fighting the Soviet occupation in Afghanistan. Following the Soviet defeat, al-Zarqawi returned to his home country with an extreme Islamic agenda.

He spent seven years in prison there for conspiracy to overthrow the Jordanian monarchy. Following his release from jail he fled the country. Al-Zarqawi first came to prominence in Iraq as leader of the radical insurgent group Tawhid and Jihad. The group merged with al-Qaida in 2004 to form al-Qaida in Iraq.

Since the merger of the two groups the videotaped beheadings of foreign hostages have become a less regular feature of insurgent activity, but attacks on the Shia dominated government have continued. He made an unprecedented appearance on a video on April 26, criticising the new Iraqi government and warning US President George W Bush of more attacks to come.

The United States put a $25 million bounty on al-Zarqawi, the same as bin Laden. In the past year, he moved his campaign beyond Iraq's borders, claiming to have carried out a November 9, 2005 triple suicide bombing against hotels in Amman that killed 60 people.

US forces believe they just missed capturing al-Zarqawi in a February 20, 2005 raid in which troops closed in on his vehicle west of Baghdad near the Euphrates River. His driver and another associate were captured and al-Zarqawi's computer was seized along with pistols and ammunition.

Zarqawi merged his group with five other insurgent factions to form a Consultative Council of Holy Warriors. So while the top man may be gone, it is not clear if his death will bring down the body count in Iraq. (With AP inputs)"