The al-Qaeda leader in Iraq Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was shown on video wearing American tennis shoes, and unable to unjam his automatic rifle.An aide had to come to his rescue. The video was issued by the US military as part of a propoganda campaign to publicly undermine him. He actually did well enough on his own to help in this instance.!

The US command showed the video to reporters at a time when it was increasing its operations against al-Qaeda in Iraq and making overtures to other Sunni groups there. It was part of a campaign to isolate religious extremists who may have been prepared to make a deal rather than entering the war.


The video clip showing the embarrasing slip-up of the al-Qaeda leader, was part of an unedited version of the tape that was posted on the internet - without the inept slip-up of course! He appeared confused when his weapon jammed and had no idea how to clear it. A frown appears on his face and he seeks help to clear it from a fellow terrorist.

The edited version showed him firing away confidently. His fellow terrorists also indicated their ineptitude as well when one attempted to grab a recently fired rifle by the barrel and probably burnt his hand.

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