Gadhafi in Groucho Glasses? Even al-Qaida Thinks He's a 'Lunatic'

The spring issue of al-Qaida's English-language magazine calls Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi a "lunatic" who "pretends to be like a rock star," and says the terror network actually supports the wave of pro-democracy revolutions sweeping the Middle East.

It's a surprising stance for al-Qaida, which has long lobbied against some Western-allied dictators in the Middle East but has always sought to replace them with Islamic law -- not democracy. Most Western analysts have described the terror network as increasingly isolated and irrelevant in recent months, as democratic change takes root in its traditional heartland. Al-Qaida has stayed silent about the recent Arab revolutions until now.

The spring issue of its English-language magazine, Inspire -- thought to be a recruiting tool for disaffected American Muslims -- appeared online this week. It features doctored photos of Gadhafi with a clown nose, alongside praise for the so-called martyrs who recently killed American servicemen on a bus in Germany, as well as 35 people in the bombing of Moscow's airport.

But the magazine reserved some of its fiercest words -- and amusing commentary -- for Gadhafi, poking fun at his "hilarious conspiracy theories and pure stupidity."

"The apostate enemy of Allah who pretends to be like a rock star has proven to the world the reality of his tyranny, lies and deception," the magazine reads, in a blurb under a photo of Gadhafi scribbled over with Groucho Marx-style glasses and mustache. "All the tyrants in the Muslim lands already do what Gadhafi does but just aren't as ridiculous."

"We ask our brothers and sisters in Libya to continue standing up against the regime and to show patience in the face of his tyranny until he falls," the magazine said.

The magazine is also running commentaries from high-ranking al-Qaida figures like U.S.-born radical preacher Anwar al-Awlaki, and the man thought to be Osama bin Laden's No. 2, Ayman al-Zawahri. Al-Zawahri is originally from Egypt, where he once served in the army under the command of recently deposed President Hosni Mubarak. He later did time in an Egyptian prison, where he was purportedly tortured.

In a four-page essay, "The Tsunami of Change," al-Awlaki wrote that "the mujahedeen around the world are going through a moment of elation." He suggested that even though revolutions in Egypt and elsewhere look democratic, there's an undercurrent of Islamic fundamentalism behind them.

"I wonder whether the West is aware of the upsurge of mujahedeen activity in Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, Yemen, Arabia, Algeria and Morocco?" added al-Awlaki, who is thought to be hiding out in Yemen.

The magazine's recent issue does not carry any commentary from bin Laden himself, who has previously railed against secular Arab dictators as well as the presence of U.S. military bases on the Arabian peninsula, and the Saudi king's allegiance with America. Bin Laden is from Saudi Arabia, and his family's ancestral homeland is Yemen -- where President Ali Abdullah Saleh is clinging to control amid widespread unrest and calls for his ouster.

The latest issue of Inspire also contains a full-page photo poking fun at Saleh, with the words "Hey Ali, Mubarak just fell. ... Guess who's joining the party next?" Underneath the photo in small print, it says, "This ad is brought to you by A Cold Diss."

This is the fifth known issue of Inspire magazine. Its inaugural issue last summer included a how-to guide on building a bomb in your mother's kitchen. The magazine is believed to be produced by al-Qaida's media wing, which also debuted a jihadist women's magazine earlier this year, with features on how to marry Mr. Right, or a mujahedeen.