Al-Qaida in Iraq letter intercepted

BAGHDAD, April 17 (UPI) -- A letter intercepted by the U.S. military from the body of a slain al-Qaida operative has provided a detailed look into the inner workings of al-Qaida in Iraq.

Officials say the 11-page letter was intended for al-Qaida leader Abu Ayyub al-Masri. The author of the letter, Abu Safyan, wrote about silencing guns in order to kill coalition forces at Iraqi security checkpoints, how to smuggle weapons to reduce possible detection and overall strategic goals to turn Iraqis against one another, the American Forces Press Service reported.

The letter recovered in March and recently released except for two pages provides a glimpse into the inner workings and strategic goals of al-Qaida in Iraq. Safyan called for waging economic and psychological warfare on Iraqis and wrote of plans for continued violence.

"This document is just one man's articulation, one terrorist's views about instigating conflict and turning Iraqis against each other," Army Maj. Gen. Kevin Bergner, a Multi-National Force-Iraq spokesman, said in a statement. "But it is also quite consistent with the patterns of violence we see from al-Qaida in Iraq."