Al-Qaida urges Muslims to attack Western capitals

An Al-Qaida commander who escaped from a US prison has urged Muslims to launch attacks against Western and Arab capitals to avenge Israel's offensive in Gaza.

An Al-Qaida commander who escaped from a US prison has urged Muslims to launch attacks against Western and Arab capitals to avenge Israel's offensive in Gaza.

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Abu Yahia al-Libi, who escaped from Afghanistan's Bagram prison in 2005, says in a video posted on militant Web sites yesterday that Muslims should launch the attacks because of the failure of Western and Arab leaders to denounce Israel's three week offensive.

The authenticity of the half-hour video could not be verified, but it was posted on Web sites commonly used by Al-Qaida.

Palestinian officials say the fighting in Gaza killed some 1,300 people.