Al Qaeda threatens Obama

With a defiant tone and accusing him of betrayal, Al Qaeda's second in command, Ayman al-Zawahri, sent a message yesterday to president-elect of the U.S. Barack Obama.

He warned him of failure if he chooses to continue with the policies of President George W. Bush and reproached Obama's plan to shift troops from Iraq to Afghanistan.

"U.S., the criminal, the invader, continues to be the same as always, which is why we need to keep harming them and force them to come to their senses", said Zawahri in an audio recording posted on the internet.

The incoming president's transition team made no comment on the recording.