BRITAIN: The second-in-command of Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network yesterday issued a chilling warning of further attacks in the UK and America and personally blamed Tony Blair's involvement in the Iraq war for the atrocities in London on July 7th.
In a broadcast aired by al-Jazeera TV exactly four weeks after blasts that killed 56 and injured hundreds in London, Ayman al-Zawahiri said the British prime minister's "policies brought you destruction in central London and will bring you more destruction".
Neither Mr Blair's office in Downing Street, nor the UK foreign office would comment on the tape, but its message drew a sharp response from President George Bush.
Speaking from his ranch in Texas, he said: "The comments by the number two man of al- Qaeda make it clear Iraq is a part of this war on terror, and we're at war ... the people like Zawahiri have an ideology that is dark, dim, backwards. He's threatening. They have come up against a nation that will defend itself."
He added: "We've had these kinds of clashes before and we have prevailed. We will stay the course. We will complete the job in Iraq."
Zawahiri, who was filmed against a brown-cloth backdrop with a rifle propped at his side, stopped short of claiming direct responsibility for the July 7th attacks. Wagging his finger in the direction of the camera, he said: "Blair's policies will bring more destruction to Britons after the London explosions."
He then told the United States: "If you continue the same hostile policies, you will see something that will make you forget the horrors you have seen in Vietnam.
"There is no way out for Washington except by immediate withdrawal. Any delay in this decision means more killing and losses. If you don't withdraw today, you will inevitably withdraw tomorrow, but only after tens of thousands are killed and injured."
Referring to a truce offer made by "our blessed Sheikh Osama" to the "crusader coalition" in April last year, he continued: "You will not dream of security until we live it as a reality in Palestine and until all your infidel armies leave the Prophet Muhammad's lands.
"Our message to you is clear, strong and final: there will be no salvation until you withdraw from our land, stop stealing our oil and resources and end support for infidel, corrupt [ Muslim] rulers."
Zawahiri has figured in at least six video or audio tapes since the September 11th attacks on the US. Before yesterday, his most recent video broadcast by al-Jazeera was in June when he called for armed struggle to expel "crusader forces and Jews" from Muslim countries.
Disparaging American attempts to promote reform in the Middle East, he said peaceful change was impossible.
An Egyptian-born doctor, Zawahiri is an Islamist militant whose faction merged with that of bin Laden in Afghanistan in the late 1990s.
Bin Laden last appeared in a video in October.
The intelligence services have found no evidence that the attacks in Britain were either organised or co-ordinated by al-Qaeda, but the organisation has proved itself to be media-savvy with carefully timed broadcasts that have indirectly linked them to previous high-profile attacks. The threats came amidst a major police operation in London, involving thousands of armed officers and dozens of elite troops.
While there was no specific intelligence about further bombings, both July 7th and July 21st, when four bombs failed to explode, were Thursdays.
This led to yesterday's huge security effort, particularly in the capital where random stop-and-search operations were carried out.
Det Chief Constable Andy Trotter, of the British Transport police, said: "This is the biggest threat London has faced in peacetime and we have to throw all our resources into it right now . . . There is a tendency to talk about Thursdays, but obviously we cannot afford to become predictable."
Meanwhile, officials yesterday said the number of passengers using the London Underground train network since the recent terrorist attacks has dropped by 15 per cent on weekdays and 30 per cent at weekends.
Managers revealed the extent to which the disruption and public anxiety had taken its toll as the tube network continued its return to normality with the complete reopening of the Piccadilly line, which was targeted for the most deadly of the July 7th attacks.
The weekday reduction in the number of passengers is believed to be directly related to the 15 per cent loss of capacity suffered after the attacks. Sections of the Piccadilly line and Circle line were closed as forensic teams from the anti-terrorist squad secured them as crime scenes and conducted a fingertip search.
The weekend reduction suggests that those who do not have to use the tube to get to work are avoiding it for the time being, although officials say the most recent trends show travellers are drifting back. - (Guardian Service)
In Dublin last night, up to 30 people attended a protest at the fatal shooting of a Brazilian man by police in London last month.
Jean Charles de Menezes was shot by plain-clothes officers at Stockwell Underground station, south London, on July 23rd, after they mistook him for a suicide bomber.
The peaceful demo outside the British embassy in Ballsbridge was supported by members of Ireland's 5,000-strong Brazilian community and other groups. - (PA)