Al Qaida's Al Zawahiri says US wars behind financial crisis

Afghanistan: Al Qaida deputy leader Ayman Al Zawahiri blames Washington's military campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan as the cause of the financial crisis.

"This crisis is one of ... the series of American economic haemorrhages after the strikes of September 11... And these ... will continue as long as the foolish American policy of wading in Muslim blood continues," Al Zawahiri said in a video posted on Islamist websites on Friday.

"The ones shouldering the burden are taxpayers, whose money was spent to rescue senior capitalists and to protect the fraudulent interest-based system from collapse," Al Zawahiri said.

The Al Qaida deputy said US military action against militant forces in Pakistan would fail despite more troops being sent by President George W. Bush to neighbouring Afghanistan.

Calls for talks to end the war in Afghanistan showed the failure of US-led forces in defeating the Taliban, he said.

"All this is proof of the failure of their crusade," Al Zawahri said on the 80-minute video, referring to efforts to start a dialogue between the Afghan government and some moderate figures from among Taliban insurgents.

He also called for a general strike in Egypt to pressure the government to open the Gaza border to defeat an Israeli siege of the area.

"What is the problem if students, employees and workers were to refuse to study and work until the siege is lifted on Gaza?" Al Zawahiri said.