A tape purporting to come from guerrilla leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi called on his supporters to show patience and prepare for a long struggle against the Americans in Iraq.
The 90-minute message, posted on the Internet, appeared to be aimed at rallying his forces following the loss of their base in Falluja and at marshaling support as Iraqis prepare for their first poll since the collapse of Saddam Hussein's regime.
"Fighters who have taken the path of jihad have to realise the nature and the demands of the battle toward the required goal," the speaker said. "This group has to be patient in the path that it has taken and . . . not to hurry victory. The promise of God will be fulfilled no matter what."
The authenticity of the tape could not immediately be verified. It appeared before President Bush was sworn in for a second term that begins under the shadow of a continuing insurgency in Iraq.
The speaker also acknowledged that a leading resistance commander in Fallujah, Omar Hadid, had been killed fighting the Americans when the city fell to the recent US-Iraqi assault. Hadid was believed to have escaped the fighting.
"Ferocious wars are not determined by the outcome of days or weeks," the speaker on the tape said. "They take their time until it's time to announce the victory of one of the parties."
Al-Zarqawi is the leader of an al-Qaeda-linked group that was responsible for kidnapping and beheading several foreigners before the fall of their Fallujah base. The United States has offered a $25 million reward for al-Zarqawi's capture or death - the same amount as for Osama bin Laden.
In a separate statement, al-Zarqawi's group claimed responsibility for an explosion ysterday that injured five British soldiers and an undetermined number of Iraqis at a supply base in southern Iraq outside Basra. A web statement said the attack was a suicide operation in retaliation for alleged British abuse of Iraqi prisoners.
In the audiotape, al-Zarqawi also denounced Iraqi Shias for allegedly fighting alongside US troops - an apparent attempt to inflame sectarian tensions ahead of the vote.
AP