Abu Omar al-Baghdadi

Reuters Revives Bogus Mr. Baghdadi as Al Qaeda-Iraq Spokesman

By Mark Finkelstein | December 4, 2007 - 12:07

Can I get an "argh"?

As detailed here, "Abu Omar al-Baghdadi" was long-ago outed as a figment of al Qaeda-in-Iraq's imagination, a transparent attempt to give a home-grown flavor to the foreign-controlled AQI operation by claiming that the non-existent Baghdadi, supposedly an Iraqi, was AQI's leader.

But despite the debunking of the bogus Mr. Baghdadi, the environmentally-sensitive Reuters recycles him today in its story "Al Qaeda-linked leader orders Iraq bombings".