Al-Jazeera airs new Zawahri tape

8216;8216;God bless the prophet of Islam in Iraq, the persistent hero of Islam, the Holy Warrior Abu Musab al Zarqawi,8217;8217; Zawahri said. He also sent greetings to the Shura Council of Mujahedeen in Iraq and insurgents, 8216;8216;who are confronting crusaders and their apostate aids and the merchants of religion8221;.

Zawahri appeared against a black background. He repeatedly waved his right hand and pointed his finger in a gesture of admonishment.The channel did not give the date the tape was made or say how it received it.

The al Qaeda deputy leader criticised a possible referendum in the Palestinian territories. 8216;8216;I call on Muslims to reject any referendum on Palestine, because Palestine is part of the Islamic world and not subject to any compromise.8217;8217; But he did not mention the Palestinian Islamic movement Hamas by name as he did in an earlier tape when he criticised it for participating in elections.

On developments in Sudan, he concentrated on the situation in Darfur, criticising the visit by UN Security Council security experts to Sudan as being 8216;8216;to prepare to occupy and divide it.8217;8217;

Weighing in on the campaign by a group of Egyptian judges for an indepent judiciary, Zawahri urged judges to apply Islamic law.