London: Setting to rest speculations about a possible tie-up between the two dread terrorist groups, al Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri blasted ISIS chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and said that he was not the leader of all Muslims.
As per a report in the Mirror, Zawahiri has relased a message online in he accused al-Baghdadi of sedition.
"We preferred to respond with as little as possible, out of our concern to extinguish the fire of sedition, but Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and his brothers did not leave us a choice, for they have demanded that all the mujahideen reject their confirmed pledges of allegiance, and to pledge allegiance to them for what they claim of a caliphate," Zawahiri said.
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The Qaeda chief said “Everyone was surprised" by Baghdadi's declaration anointing himself the fourth caliph in Islamic history, adding that he has done so without consulting the Muslims.
Interestingly, a few back Zawahri, while dismissing Baghdadi as illegitimate, had said that al Qaeda will join Islamic State in fighting the Western-led coalition in Iraq and Syria if possible.
In an audiotape on the internet, Zawahri said: "We don't recognize this caliphate."
"Despite the big mistakes (of Islamic State), if I were in Iraq or Syria I would cooperate with them in killing the crusaders and secularists and Shi'ites even though I don't recognize the legitimacy of their state, because the matter is bigger than that," he said.
