Al-Qaida's No. 2 leader is ridiculing President Barack Obama's plan to increase troop numbers in Afghanistan, warning that doing so will add fuel to the fire.
In a new Internet recording, Ayman al-Zawahri also urges al-Qaida in Iraq to "break the borders" of neighboring countries and liberate Jerusalem from the Israelis.
Al-Zawahri's comments were posted on a militant Web site Monday. They came as the Obama administration plans to increase troop levels in Afghanistan and start withdrawing forces from Iraq.
Osama bin Laden's top lieutenant also lashed out at Egypt for mediating talks between rival Palestinian factions. Al-Zawahri says those talks are aimed at pressuring the Islamic Hamas group to accept peace with Israel.
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