BAGHDAD - U.S. warplanes killed Abu Musab al- Zarqawi , the al Qaeda leader in Iraq behind a bloody campaign of bombings and beheadings, and President George W. Bush said it could help turn the tide against a long-running insurgency.
"(The air strike) delivered justice to the most wanted terrorist in Iraq," Bush said in Washington on Thursday.
In one of the most significant developments in Iraq since the capture of Saddam Husseinin 2003, Jordanian-born Zarqawi was killed on Wednesday in a joint U-S.-Iraqi operation helped by tip-offs from Iraqis and Jordanian intelligence.
Vowing to fight on, al Qaeda in Iraq confirmed the death of Zarqawi , who beheaded several hostages himself and appeared in a recent video firing a machinegun in the desert.
The U.S. military displayed pictures to reporters of the corpse of the bearded Zarqawi with facial abrasions and his eyes closed. The air strike was carried out by two F-16 planes with two 500 lb (227 kg) bombs hitting Zarqawi 's "safe house".
Zarqawi , in his late 30s and whom Osama bin Laden called the prince of al Qaeda in Iraq, had symbolised the radical Islamist insurgency against U.S. occupation.
U.S. special forces were involved in the trailing of Sheikh Abdul-Rahman, Zarqawi 's spiritual adviser, that helped uncover Zarqawi 's presence in a small house in a palm grove area. Abdul-Rahman was also killed in the air strike.
War Against Terrorism
Bush said the death of Zarqawi , who had a $25 million bounty on his head, was a victory in the war against terrorism.
"( Zarqawi 's death provides) an opportunity for Iraq's new government to turn the tide in this struggle," Bush told a news conference in the Rose Garden at the White House.
But a sombre-looking Bush signalled he did not expect the killing of Zarqawi near the city of Baquba, 65 km (40 miles) north of Baghdad, to bring about any early end to the violence.
"We have tough days ahead of us in Iraq that will require the continued patience of the American people," said Bush, battling low poll ratings, partly over Iraq, as his Republican Party faces mid-term congressional elections in November.
A string of bombs killed at least 31 people in Baghdad on Thursday. In the deadliest blast, a roadside bomb in a crowded market in an eastern area killed 13 people, police said.
In a political breakthrough, Iraq's parliament approved Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's candidates for new defence and interior ministers after intense wrangling among his coalition government partners.
Followers of Zarqawi , a Sunni Muslim who had declared war on Iraq's majority Shi'ites reinforcing fears he was out to ignite civil war, pledged to carry on their fight.
"We tell our prince, Sheikh bin Laden, your soldiers in al Qaeda in Iraq will continue along the same path that you set out for Abu Musab al- Zarqawi ," said an Islamist Web site statement.
U.S. Major General William Caldwell said an Egyptian militant trained in Afghanistan called Abu al-Masari, who established the first al Qaeda cell in Baghdad, may succeed Zarqawi as head of the group in Iraq.
Long Operation
Caldwell told reporters the operation to track down Zarqawi took many weeks. "It truly was a very long, painstaking, deliberate exploitation of intelligence, information gathering, human sources, electronics, signal intelligence," he said.
Six people, including a woman and a child, were killed in the house but only Zarqawi and Abdul-Rahman have been identified. Zarqawi was identified by his fingerprints and tattoos. A further DNA test was being carried out on Zarqawi .
Seventeen raids were launched on suspected hideouts for Zarqawi associates in the Baghdad area after he was killed. They produced a "treasure trove" of information, officials said.
The killing of Zarqawi had an impact on oil prices. Crude futures were down more than one dollar to $68.17 a barrel.
Zarqawi , who faced four death sentences in Jordan, one for his role in killing a U.S. diplomat, had inspired a flood of militants from across the Arab world to blow themselves up in suicide missions in Iraq.
Taunting Bush during the video taped killing of a sobbing, blindfolded U.S. hostage, Zarqawi once boasted his al Qaeda fighters "love death just like you love life".
"Killing for the sake of God is their best wish," he said, drawing a knife to hack off the head of his kneeling victim.
Zarqawi 's reputation for personal savagery stood out even in a country where brutal killings were routine, and sparked reports bin Laden and his deputy Ayman al-Zawahri were worried his homicidal zeal would undermine support for their network.
"I think arguably over the last several years no single person on this planet has had the blood of more innocent men, women and children on his hands than has Zarqawi ," U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld told reporters.
"He personified (a) dark, sadistic mediaeval vision."
Some Arab citizens hailed Zarqawi as a hero for his role in the insurgency but others welcomed his death as a form of justice for a militant whose attacks killed far more Iraqi civilians than foreign troops.
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