Al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri called on Algerians to overthrow the government of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, and praised Libyan rebels for seizing Tripoli, in a new video released Tuesday. Osama bin Laden’s successor Zawahiri urged Libyans to adopt sharia law as they rebuild the country after the NATO-backed rebels’ ouster of longtime leader Moamer Kadhafi.
“The first thing that this NATO will ask of you is to relinquish your Islam,” Zawahiri said according to a translation provided by US monitoring service SITE, dismissing the military alliance as a “Western gang”. “Be careful of the plots of the West and its henchmen while you are building your new state. Don’t allow them to deceive you and steal your sacrifices and suffering.” Zawahiri, wearing white, was shown sitting in a cloth-covered chair in front of a green backdrop in the 13-minute video released on extremist forums, SITE said.
