Iraq Terror Chief Killed In Air Strike

U.S., Iraq, Say Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi Identified Through Fingerprints

(CBS/AP)  "Those who disrupt the course of life, like al-Zarqawi, will have a tragic end," al-Maliki said. He also warned those who would follow the militant's lead that "whenever there is a new al-Zarqawi, we will kill him.

"This is a message for all those who embrace violence, killing and destruction to stop and to (retreat) before it's too late. It is an open battle with all those who incite sectarianism."

In London, British Prime Minister Tony Blair said al-Zarqawi's death "was very good news because a blow against al Qaeda in Iraq was a blow against al Qaeda everywhere."

Khalilzad added that "the death of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi is a huge success for Iraq and the international war on terror." He also gave a thumbs up and said it was a good day for America.

Since his emergence following the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, al-Zarqawi had become Iraq's most wanted militant, as notorious as Osama bin Laden, to whom he swore allegiance in 2004. The United States put a $25 million bounty on al-Zarqawi, the same as bin Laden.

State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said the process of examining the criteria for the award has "not been activated yet." Since the tip was provided by a man who was a member of al-Zarqawi's organization, it is very unlikely he will see any of the $25 million reward on al-Zarqawi's head, Martin reported.

His fighters led a wave of kidnappings of foreigners, killing at least a dozen, including Arab diplomats and three Americans. Al-Zarqawi is believed to have wielded the knife in the beheadings of two of the Americans, Nicholas Berg and Eugene Armstrong, and earned himself the title of "the slaughtering sheik" among his supporters.

He has also been a master Internet propagandist, spreading the call for Islamic extremists to join the "jihad" or holy war in Iraq. His group posted gruesome images of beheadings, speeches by al-Zarqawi and recruitment videos depicting the planning and execution of its most daring attacks.

Al-Zarqawi was committed to fighting not only Western civilization, but also Shia Muslims who make up 60 percent of Iraq's population, Palmer reported. Now that he is dead, there's hope that other Sunni insurgent groups who are fighting with him may be convinced somehow to lay down their arms, and perhaps even join the government, Palmer said.

But CBS News terrorism analyst Michael Scheuer, a former CIA officer, cautioned that al-Zarqawi's death may not stem violence in Iraq.

"In some ways this is very good news for al Qaeda, because al Qaeda's forces in Iraq will now focus more on Americans and the Iraqi government, than on simply killing Shias because they're heretical people," Scheuer told CBS News' The Early Show.

"It's very good news for America. But in terms of the Iraqi insurgency, the insurgency probably will return to more military related targets now," Scheuer added.

While leaders said the killing was a major victory, Iraqi citizens had mixed reactions.

"If it's true al-Zarqawi was killed, that will be a big happiness for all the Iraqis," said college student Thamir Abdulhussein. "He was behind all the killings of Sunni and Shiites. Iraqis should now move toward reconciliation. They should stop the violence."

Amir Muhammed Ali, a 45-year-old stock broker in Baghdad, was skeptical that al-Zarqawi's death would end the unrelenting violence in the country.

"He didn't represent the resistance, someone will replace him and the operations will go on," he said.

In the past year, he moved his campaign beyond Iraq's borders, claiming to have carried out a Nov. 9, 2005, triple suicide bombing against hotels in Amman, Jordan, that killed 60 people, and even a rocket attack from Lebanon into northern Israel.

Caldwell, the U.S. military spokesman, said an Egyptian-born man he identified as Abu al-Masri will probably take over al-Qaida in Iraq. He said al-Masri trained in Afghanistan and probably came to Iraq in 2002, probably helping to establish the first al-Qaida cell in Baghdad.