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Zarqawi 'left Iraq for surgery'
29/05/2005 09:13 - (SA)
London - Al-Qaeda's leader in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, has fled the country for emergency surgery after a US air strike left him with shrapnel lodged in his chest, the Sunday Times newspaper reported.
In a front-page report that quoted "a senior insurgent commander in close contact with his group", it said it was believed that Zarqawi - the most wanted insurgent in Iraq - was in Iran.
The report contradicted a statement on several Islamist websites on Friday in which al-Qaeda in Iraq asserted that Zarqawi was "in good health" and directing military operations.
The Sunday Times said Zarqawi has suffered bouts of high fever since he was wounded by a missile that struck his three-car convoy three weeks ago as he fled a US offensive near al-Qaim, a town in northwest Iraq.
"Shrapnel went in between the right shoulder and his chest, ripped it open and is still stuck in there," the commander was quoted as saying.
Not known how serious
His condition late last week was described as stable, but supporters were preparing to move him to a "non-Arab" country for surgery to remove the two pieces of shrapnel, The Sunday Times said.
The newspaper said the commander's account could not be independently corroborated, but added that he has proved reliable in the past.
US officials, who initially reacted sceptically to reports that Zarqawi had been hit, have since given greater credence to the claims although they said they still have not been able to confirm them.
The Washington Post has quoted a Zarqawi lieutenant by the nom-de-guerre of Abu Karrar as saying the Jordanian-born insurgent chief was shot and wounded in fighting with US forces near the western city of Ramadi on May 21-22.
On Thursday, Iraqi interior minister Bayan Baqer Solagh said he had information that Zarqawi had been wounded, but that the seriousness of his injuries was unknown.
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