Iraqi National Congress distances itself from self-proclaimed mayor of Baghdad

The self-delcared mayor of Baghdad held meetings around the city with tribal leaders and local people yesterday as he continued his efforts to form an administration that is recognised neither by the United States nor his putative Iraqi backers.

Mohammed Mohsen al-Zubaidi, a former exiled intelligence operative nicknamed The Wolf, has courted controversy since he stepped out of the shadows on 8 April. Yesterday, he shrugged off a complaint from the diplomat Barbara Bodine, the US-nominated governor of Baghdad, who said on Monday: "We do not recognise him."

But Mr Zubaidi has also drawn criticism from the Iraqi National Congress (INC), the political group based in London during Saddam Hussein's regime, of which he claimed to be deputy head.

Zaab Sethna, an INC spokesman, said yesterday that Mr Zubaidi was not speaking or acting on behalf of the organisation. "He was a former intelligence operative with the INC and his work was very successful," Mr Sethna said. "He operated out of Lebanon and Syria and ran networks in Iraq. He penetrated the Iraqi government at many levels."

He added: "On 8 April he came to Baghdad and the next thing we heard he was making all these statements saying he was speaking for the INC. He came to see us yesterday and he was told to stop saying he was INC. He does not represent the INC."

The confusion is a result of the power vacuum left by the ousting of Saddam Hussein. While most people appear glad Saddam has gone, they are anxious at the lawlessness that has replaced him. One man declared at one of Mr Zubaidi's semi-public meetings yesterday: "We need a strong man who will stand up to the Americans."

During another heated session at the Palestine Hotel, attended by about 70 people, Mr Zubaidi listened to representations from tribal leaders, lawyers and doctors appealing to him to help the city get back to normal after the fighting and the looting that followed. "You have to be patient," Mr Zubaidi responded.

Asked about Ms Bodine's comments, which appeared to imply that Washington wanted nothing to do with him, he said: "If it is for the benefit of my country and my people I will work with them."

When Mr Zubaidi proclaimed himself mayor of the city, he said he had been elected by a group of intellectuals, imams and business leaders. Quite what form that election took is unclear, but Mr Zubaidi – surrounded by cronies and Iraqi policemen who march ahead of him knocking people out of the way – has established 22 committees to run various aspects of the civil administration, from the courts to the hospitals.

As the struggle for control of Baghdad goes on, most of the ordinary people in Iraq are suspicious of the Americans and exile groups such as the INC and its leader, Ahmed Chalabi, who is backed by the Allies. The absence of any alternative has provided Mr Zubaidi with an opportunity to seize the initiative.