Al-Qaida leader in Iraq calls for continued jihad

The Associated Press writer Maamoun Youssef reports today that "the self-described leader of an al-Qaida front group has called for continued jihad against Iraq's American 'occupiers' in the wake of the March 7 election that he claimed was boycotted by most Sunni Arabs."

Abu Omar al-Baghdadi is the head of the Islamic State of Iraq who vowed in an audio tape to violently disrupt the vote. Despite his threats, the election saw a turnout of 62 percent of eligible voters. He is quoted as saying, "the elections outcome means nothing to us... we will continue chasing the occupier and his agents until we purify the land from their filth."

Jeremiah the ancient Hebrew prophet declared the cities of the land of Chaldea -- today the nation of Iraq -- would be consumed by fire, after which the occupiers would leave out of frustration at the failure of their reconstruction efforts.

The cities of Iraq have not yet burned, and the timetable for withdrawal is nearing. If the troops leave before the cities burn, today's events in Iraq will have been proven to have no relation to the ancient prophecy.