Top Shiite aide calls for a holy war on British soldiers

WORSHIPPERS at a Basra mosque were told yesterday that anyone who captures a female British soldier can keep her as a slave.

A senior aide of renegade Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr also called on supporters to launch a holy war against British troops in the city.

Sheik Abdul-Sattar al-Bahadli held in his hand what he said were documents and photographs of three Iraqi women being raped at British-run prisons in Iraq.

Bahadli said 250,000 dinars (195) will be given to anyone who captures a British soldier and 100,000 dinars (83) for the killing of one.

He also offered cash for anyone who captured or killed a member of the Governing Council, a widely unpopular interim administration appointed by the United States-led coalition ten months ago. He also called on government departments in Basra to display pictures of Sadr in their offices.

Bahadli, Sadr’s chief representative in southern Iraq, was speaking in a Friday sermon at al-Hawi mosque in British-controlled central Basra.

This is the first time that any anti-occupation activist of note has offered financial reward for the killing or capturing of coalition troops. Bahadli kept an assault rifle next to him as he spoke to an estimated 3,000 worshippers, occasionally lifting it as he screamed "jihad", and "Allahu Akbar", or "God is greatest".

He said British forces in Basra have failed to honour agreements not to patrol inside the city and to stop harassing Sadr supporters in Basra.

Meanwhile, an audio recording attributed to Osama bin Laden and offering rewards in gold for the killing of British, US and UN officials in Iraq or of the citizens of any nation fighting there, was probably authentic, the CIA said yesterday.

The 20 minute recording, appeared on two websites known for militant Islamic messages. The voice sounded like that of bin Laden and the words were heavy with Koranic verse.

After conducting a technical analysis of the audio recording, a CIA official said the agency’s assessment was that it was "likely" the voice of bin Laden. "You know that America promised big rewards for those who kill mujahedeen (holy warriors)," the speaker said. "We in al-Qaeda organisation will guarantee, God willing, 10,000 grams of gold to whoever kills the occupier Bremer ... or his deputy in Iraq."

He was referring to Paul Bremer, the chief US administrator in Iraq, and top military officials.

"For security reasons, the rewards will be given as soon as conditions permit, God willing," the voice said. "As for those who die while killing an occupying solider, the great prize will be for us and for him when God grants him martyrdom, and the smaller prize [the gold] will be for his family."

The gold is worth about 70,000. The recording promised the same reward for the deaths of the UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, and his envoy to Iraq, Lakhdar Brahimi.