IRAQ: Saddam Hussein, not seen since he was toppled in April, appeared to call on Iraqis to mount a jihad, or holy struggle, to oust occupying US troops in an audiotape aired yesterday.
A massive manhunt by US troops has failed to find Saddam, but US officials generally believe he is alive.
"The enemy wants to weaken Iraq and the only genuine solution is to resist the occupation through jihad so to inflict losses and evict the enemy from Iraq," said the speaker on the tape broadcast by two Arabic language stations.
Listeners familiar with Saddam's speeches said the voice and style of address sounded very like the former Iraqi leader.
The tape, aired by al Arabiya and al Jazeera satellite TV, coincided with the 35th anniversary of Saddam's Baath Party's rise to power in Iraq.
The tape referred to recent events in Iraq, suggesting that if the voice is indeed Saddam's, then he is still alive.
The speaker described as "baseless" US and British allegations that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction, the main justification for the war which overthrew Saddam.
The speaker attacked the formation of Iraq's new US-backed Governing Council, saying it could not serve the Iraqi people.
"Whoever is appointed by the foreign occupier cannot give his people and the country anything other than the will of the occupiers," the speaker said.
In Washington, a US intelligence official said the tape was being reviewed to determine its authenticity.
"They will be reviewing the tape in an effort to determine whether it is authentic and to get any other information from it," reported the official.
The speaker urged Iraqis of all sects and ethnic groups to unite in fighting the occupation. The tape is the third recording to surface since Saddam was toppled.