When President George W. Bush addressed a military audience at the Las Vegas Convention Center this week he mentioned Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the Jordanian said to be affiliated with al-Qaeda and believed responsible for the beheadings and car bombings that have caused havoc in Iraq.

"Zarqawi was in and out of Baghdad," Mr Bush told a group of reservists at the National Guard Association's annual convention. "He's the guy who cuts people's heads off and hopes we'll cringe and shirk our duty."