by Steven R. Corman

Firstread is reporting (by way of Evan Kohlmann of GlobalTerrorAlert) that the flap over a photo of Barack Obama in tribal gear has been picked up on the al Qaeda forum al Hesbah:

Al Qaeda sympathizers cited the image as evidence that American political leaders, particularly Hillary Clinton, want to portray Islam as a political negative.

says the story. And they don’t much care to be associated with Obama:

“Not only are they enraged by the implication that being Muslim is something to be ashamed of,” Kohlmann added, “but moreover, they are nearly equally indignant about the much-rumored notion that Obama (who has repeatedly declared his faith in Christianity and his support for Israel) is somehow in league with them.”

The story continues,

One user, with a login that suggests Saudi nationality, claimed in his response, “Obama is actually of Persian-Iranian origin. Many of the Persians emigrated to Kenya after the fall of the Persian empire… . We ask Allah to destroy Obama, Kerry, Clinton, America, its allies, and its slaves.”

So much for hopes in some conservative circles (and maybe one liberal circle, depending on who you believe) that the photo will paint Obama a terrorist sympathizer.