Paris: Al-Qaeda number two Ayman al-Zawahiri has lashed out at U.S. President George W Bush accusing him of giving a ``strong impetus'' to India's nuclear programme while ``doling out orders'' to Pakistan.

In a video released on a Jihadist website, Zawahiri pointed to a visit by Mr. Bush in March to New Delhi during which he signed a nuclear cooperation agreement with India.

``He gives a strong impetus to the Indian nuclear programme, while doling out orders to Pakistan,'' the Al-Qaeda leader said on Friday.

He also lashed out at Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf for his support to the U.S.-led war on terror. ``Musharraf is fighting Islam in Pakistan ... threatens national security in Pakistan... has placed Pakistan's nuclear programme under American, therefore Jewish and Indian control.''

``I call on the people of Pakistan to work to remove this traitor from power...and I call on every officer and soldier in the Pakistani army to disobey their commanders' orders to kill Muslims in Pakistan and Afghanistan,'' Zawahiri said.

In the third message from the organisation in a week, Zawahiri said ``Musharraf was prepared to flee abroad where he had bank accounts when the popular revolution breaks out.''

According to the video, the ``message to the people of Pakistan'' was recorded after the third anniversary of the fall of the regime of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein on April 9, 2003.

The video followed an audiotape broadcast on Al-Jazeera television last Sunday in which Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden called on Muslim fighters to go to Sudan to wage war against ``crusader thieves'' and slammed the international isolation of the Hamas-led Palestinian government.

The tape was the first from bin Laden since January 19.

Zawahiri also lashed out in his message at the United States, Britain, and the governments of Iraq, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Egypt.

``Three years after the invasion of Iraq by the crusaders, America, Britain and their allies have only registered losses, catastrophes and misfortunes,'' Zawahiri said.

``Al-Qaeda in (Iraq) alone has carried out 800 suicide operations in three years,'' Zawahiri said.

In a separate video broadcast on the internet today, an Al-Qaeda member called on ``Afghan Arabs'' who had fought Soviet forces in Afghanistan to join up with bin Laden to take on the U.S. forces there. — AFP

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