Abu Musab al-Zarqawi is barely dead, but it looks like he’s got a successor
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) — Al Qaeda in Iraq has named a successor to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the terrorist leader killed in a U.S. airstrike last week north of Baghdad, Islamist Web sites said Monday.
The sites identified the militant group’s new leader as Sheikh Abu Hamza al-Muhajer, which means “the immigrant,” indicating that he — like Jordanian-born al-Zarqawi — is not Iraqi.
CNN has not been able to confirm the claim’s authenticity.
“The word of the Shura Council of the Qaeda organization in the land of the two rivers was united on electing Sheikh Abu Hamza al-Muhajer to be the successor to the Sheikh Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. God bless his soul on commanding the organization,” one Web site said.
Here’s hoping he joins al-Zarqawi in paradise with no undue delay.
