Zarqawi, Iraq's most wanted man, 'wounded in battle'

Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the most wanted insurgent in Iraq, has been wounded in fighting, the group he leads has said.

Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the most wanted insurgent in Iraq, has been wounded in fighting, the group he leads has said.

A statement issued by al-Qa'ida in Iraq said that the Jordanian-born militant - whose fighters kidnapped and beheaded the British hostage Ken Bigley - had been injured "in the path of God" and urged Muslims to pray for him.

The announcement yesterday came after reports that Zarqawi, described as Osama bin Laden's "emir" in the country, was brought in for treatment, heavily bleeding, to a hospital in the city of Ramadi.

The US authorities, who had placed a $25m (£14m) bounty on the 37-year-old Jordanian's head, the same price as that on Bin Laden, were cautious about the claim, saying that it could not be immediately verified.

Lt-Col Steve Boylan of the US Army said: "We have no information on whether he is wounded or what the state of his health is. He is still our number one target to be captured or killed." A spokesman for the Pentagon added: " We have seen the reports. We do not have anything to contribute at the moment."

However, Iraqi government officials in Baghdad pointed out that this was the first time that al-Qa'ida in Iraq had issued such a statement about their leader and that it had been posted on an Islamist website normally used by his group. They also stressed the announcement followed a number of similar reports from other sources.

The statement from Al-Qa'ida in Iraqdid not give any details of the circumstances surrounding the injury. It said: "O Nation of Islam ... Pray for the healing of our Sheikh Abu Musab al-Zarqawi from an injury he suffered in the path of God ... Our Sheikh has taught us nothing is worthy compared to Islam.

"Let the near and far know that the injury of our leader is an honour, and a cause to close in on the enemies of God, and a reason to increase the attacks against them."

The US military had been investigating a doctor's account of how he allegedly treated Zarqawi, who had been brought into the general hospital in Ramadi. It followed an offensive by US forces near al-Qaim, in north-west Iraq.

The doctor said he had recognised Zarqawi from photographs. He claimed: "He was bleeding heavily and his escorts were well dressed with a look about them that was different from the casualties and family members we had been receiving from the al-Qaim offensive.

"I treated his injuries and asked that he remain in hospital for further observations and told him that we would have to register him and take down his name and details. But he became very nervous and agitated. He refused and told me he would not be staying.

"The three men with him asked me politely that he be allowed to leave hospital and that I supply them with a prescription and a list of medication he may need."

Zarqawi, whose real name is Ahmed Fadhil al-Khalayleh, had become the most high-profile militant leader in the current conflict, claiming the credit for spectacular attacks against American, British and Iraqi government targets.

Al-Qa'ida in Iraq had also gained a grim reputation for the kidnapping and murder of a number of Iraqi and foreign hostages and Zarqawi is alleged to have personally carried out the killings on a number of occasions.

The mystique around him began building in the run up to the Iraq invasion when the US Secretary of State, Colin Powell, told the United Nations that Zarqawi, an associate of Bin Laden, had sought refuge in Iraq and this was a sign Saddam Hussein was courting al-Qa'ida. However, the US failed to provide any evidence to back this up.

Last week, in a taped message, Zarqawi declared al-Qa'ida was justified in killing members of Iraq's Shia population for "collaborating" with the enemy.