Al-Qaida leader: Avenge Afghan Quran burning

CAIRO (AP) — Al-Qaida's leader has urged Muslims to take revenge for the February burning of Quran Muslim holy books at a U.S. air base in Afghanistan.

Ayman al-Zawahri posted an audio on a militant website on Wednesday.

He called on Muslims to avenge the burning by fighting "those aggressors who occupied your countries, stole your wealth and violated your sanctities."

The recording was released by Al-Sahab, al-Qaida's media arm, and reported by the SITE Intelligence Group, which monitors militant messages.

The U.S. apologized, saying the Islamic texts were mistakenly sent to a garbage burn pit. Deadly protests raged in Afghanistan for six days afterward.

Al-Zawahri said the Americans and their allies commit crimes and then pretend to be sorry. He called that a "silly farce."