BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq security agencies are working to verify the authenticity of a video that purportedly shows the elusive leader of the Sunni extremist group that has declared an Islamic state in a large chunk of territory it controls leading prayers this week in northern Iraq, authorities said.

The video said to show Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the head of the Islamic State group, was reportedly filmed on Friday at the Great Mosque in Iraq's second-largest city, Mosul. It was posted on at least two websites known to be used by the organization and bore the logo of its media arm.

The sermon in Mosul would the first public appearance for al-Baghdadi, a shadowy figure who has emerged as perhaps the preeminent figure in the international jihadi community. Al-Baghdadi, who has a $10 million U.S. bounty on his head, took over the group four years ago and has since transformed it from an al-Qaida affiliate focused on Iraq into an independent transnational force that controls of a huge stretch of land straddling the Syria-Iraq border.

Iraqi military spokesman Lt. Gen. Qassim al-Moussawi told reporters Sunday the country's security services are still analyzing the 21-minute video to verify whether the speaker is indeed al-Baghdadi, and that the government will "announce the details once they are available."

The purported appearance in Mosul, a city of some 2 million that the militants seized last month, came five days after al-Baghdadi's group declared the establishment of an Islamic state, or caliphate, in the territories it has seized in Iraq and Syria. The group proclaimed al-Baghdadi the leader of its state and demanded that all Muslims pledge allegiance to him.

Wearing black robes and a black turban, the man in the video said to be al-Baghdadi urges his followers to jihad, and emphasizes the implementation of a strict interpretation of Islamic law. He strikes an almost humble tone, telling listeners: "I am not better than you or more virtuous than you."

A senior Iraqi intelligence official told The Associated Press on Saturday that an initial analysis indicated that the man in the video is indeed al-Baghdadi. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the media.

The government carried out at least three airstrikes Sunday in Mosul, two of which hit the Rashidiyah neighborhood and one of which targeted the 17 Tammuz district, residents said. It was not clear whether the raids were related to the video.

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In this undated photo posted on a militant website that frequently carries official statements from …

A medical official in the city said seven people were killed and 30 wounded in one strike in Rashidiyah. Casualty figures were not immediately available for the other air raids.

Both the residents and the official spoke on condition of anonymity over fears for their safety.

It was not clear what the air raids targeted, and the Iraqi military could not immediately be reached for comment.

Over the past month, al-Baghdadi's fighters have overrun much of northern and western Iraq, adding to the territory they already control in neighboring Syria. The group's initial surge in Iraq has crested, at least for now, after having grabbed most of Iraq's predominantly Sunni Arab regions and reaching majority Shiite areas, where resistance is tougher.

One of the main battlefronts now is the country's largest oil refinery near Beiji, some 250 kilometers (155 miles) north of Baghdad, where government forces are besieged by Islamic State group fighters.

Al-Moussawi, the military spokesman, said security forces repelled an overnight attack on the facility, killing around 20 militants and damaging eight vehicles. The casualty figures could not be independently verified.

The Sunni militant offensive has ramped up the pressure on Iraq's political leaders to quickly form a new government that can confront the insurgents and keep the country from fracturing along ethnic and sectarian lines.

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This image made from video posted on a militant website Saturday, July 5, 2014, which has been authe …

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, a Shiite whose State of Law bloc won the biggest chunk of the vote in April elections, is angling for a third consecutive term, and vowed last week he would not withdraw his candidacy — despite calls for him to step aside.

He has been widely accused of trying to monopolize power. Rivals and former allies alike say he has exacerbated the crisis by failing to pursue reconciliation with the country's Sunni minority, which complains it is treated like second-class citizens by al-Maliki's government.

Late Saturday, Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr said the next prime minister must come from State of Law, but he urged the bloc to put forward a candidate other than al-Maliki, saying an alternative nominee "will help end the suffering."

"It is necessary to demonstrate the national and paternal spirit for a higher and noble goal," al-Sadr said in a statement released by his office. "I mean changing the candidates, which will be a welcome and blessed step during this hard time the country goes through."

The comments marked a shift in al-Sadr's position. He previously said that the next prime minister must be Shiite, but not from State of Law.

The political group that al-Sadr used to head controls 33 out of the 328 seats in parliament. Al-Maliki's bloc holds 92.

Also, Iran's state news agency said an Iranian pilot named Shoja'at Alamdari Mourjani was killed while defending Shiite holy sites in the Iraqi city of Samarra, which is home to one of the most revered shrines in Shiite Islam. It said Mourjani was buried Friday in a village near Shiraz in southern Iran.

It was not clear in what capacity Mourjani was fighting in Iraq, nor how he was killed.

Iran, the regional Shiite power, has said it will provide any help necessary to aid Iraq in its current crisis. Tehran has maintained close ties with successive Shiite-led governments in Iraq since the 2003 ouster of Saddam Hussein, a Sunni who oppressed the Shiites.

Late Sunday, a bomb exploded inside a coffee shop in the primarily Shiite neighborhood of Washash in western Baghdad, killing five people and wounding 17, police officials said. Hospital officials confirmed the casualty figures.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to brief the media.

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Associated Press writer Nasser Karimi contributed from Tehran.

Iraq analyzing tape purported to show top militant

Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi of the Islamic State is shown in the video urging his followers to jihad.
First public appearance

HALIFAX, Nova Scotia (AP) — Canada's Maritime provinces were cleaning up Sunday after Arthur struck with near-hurricane strength winds and torrential rains, knocking down trees and leaving tens of thousands of people without power.

Arthur was downgraded from a hurricane to a post-tropical storm Saturday morning before it slammed into Atlantic Canada, but the storm still packed a punch, drenching parts of New Brunswick and knocking out power to more than 250,000 customers at its peak intensity.

Crews were working Sunday to restore power to nearly 140,000 customers in New Brunswick and more than 90,000 in Nova Scotia. Prince Edward Island's power utility estimates nearly 5,000 customers were without power. Some residents have been told they could be without power for several days. Communities in the hardest hit areas of New Brunswick set up temporary charging stations so residents could power up their cellphones and other electronic devices.

The Canadian Hurricane Centre reported rainfall amounts in excess of 5.5 inches (14 centimeters) in southwest New Brunswick on Saturday, leading to localized flooding in cities such as Saint John and Fredericton.

Forecasters predict Arthur will continue to weaken as it tracks northeast across the Gulf of St. Lawrence with winds of 50 mph (80 kph). Canadian Hurricane Centre meteorologist Doug Mercer predicted the storm's eye will make landfall in western Newfoundland Sunday afternoon before heading in the Labrador Sea. By that time, its winds should be down to 43.5 mph (70 kph).

NB Power said the largest number of outages was in Fredericton where winds of more than 62 mph (100 kph) had knocked down a number of large trees, leaving streets littered with debris.

In Fredericton, Mike Gange said the buffeting winds tore down a maple tree in his front yard, damaging roof tiles and a rain gutter as it fell. He said that as he drove around the New Brunswick provincial capital he saw about 25 homes with big trees knocked down.

Gange said he has not seen weather this severe in his 41 years in Fredericton.

"It's like a Tasmanian devil ripping through your backyard," he said. "It's crazy here ... at times it rains so hard you can't see 10 feet in front of you."

The Canadian Hurricane Centre said the highest wind gusts were recorded in Greenwood, Nova Scotia at 86 mph (139 kph) — the equivalent of a Category 1 hurricane.

The storm also caused flight cancellations and delays at the region's largest airport in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Prince Edward Island said a number of electrical poles had been knocked down by the storm and roads were blocked by downed trees.

Arthur reached Atlantic Canada after swiping earlier at North Carolina's Outer Banks, where some vacationers were already back on beaches Saturday despite warnings that the water remained dangerous. The only road onto Hatteras Island was reopened to all traffic on Saturday afternoon. The island had been closed to visitors since early Thursday.

The New England states were largely spared from damage spawned by the storm as it moved north, but there were some scattered power outages in Maine and Vermont and reports of localized flooding in coastal areas of Massachusetts.

Arthur slams eastern Canada, knocks out power

Canada's Maritime provinces clean up after being hit with near-hurricane strength winds and torrential rains.
'Like a Tasmanian devil'

By Philip Pullella

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Francis holds his first meeting with victims of sexual abuse by priests on Monday, an encounter that some say should have happened long ago, and victims from his native Argentina say they are pained over their exclusion.

Six victims, two each from Ireland, Britain and Germany, will attend the pope's private morning Mass in his Vatican residence and then meet with him afterwards, according to people who organized the meeting.

Francis has said he would show zero tolerance for anyone in the Catholic Church who abused children, including bishops, and compared sexual abuse of children by priests to a "Satanic Mass".

But he has also come under fire from victims groups for saying in an interview this year that the Roman Catholic Church has done more than any other organization to root out pedophiles in its ranks.

Why the pope waited nearly 16 months since his election in March 2013 to meet with sexual abuse victims is not clear, particularly as his predecessor, former Pope Benedict, met several times with them during his trips outside Italy.

"I think its very important that the pope meet with victims," said Anne Doyle of Bishops Accountability, a U.S.-based documentation center on abuse in the Catholic Church.

"We know that this pope is capable of compassion and his refusal to meet with sexual abuse victims so far has been inconsistent with the mercy he has shown with so many marginalized. This is something that he had to rectify," she said.

Victims groups have said the pope had a spotty record of dealing with abuse cases in Argentina when he was archbishop of Buenos Aires, and victims from that country sent him a letter asking him why they were not invited.

PAIN OF EXCLUSION

"This fact pains us," four victims of sexual abuse by priests said in a letter sent to the pope and made available to Reuters.

"You must know the things that happen here and why the victims have been fighting for so many years, as well as the new cases that are surfacing," said the letter, signed by four victims.

Doyle, of Bishops Accountability, said the pope should quickly follow up with "several core actions" to show that the meeting is not merely ceremonial.

"He definitely must explicitly tell his bishops that all Church officials must report crimes and suspected crimes to civil authorities," pointing that in a number of developing countries it is up to the victim to report sexual crimes.

The sexual abuse scandal has haunted the Catholic Church for over two decades but became a major issue in the United States about 10 years ago.

Since then it has also disgraced local churches in Ireland, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands and other countries and badly tarnished the Church's image.

The Vatican says 3,420 credible accusations of sexual abuse by priests had been referred to the Vatican in the past 10 years and 824 clerics defrocked. The Church in the United States has paid $2.5 billion in compensation to victims.

The commission advising the pope on the sexual abuse crisis, which includes Boston's Cardinal Sean O'Malley, met on Sunday and is expected to announce on Monday that it will expand it ranks to include more members from the developing world.

(Reporting By Philip Pullella; Editing by Mohammad Zargham)