Washington, Nov 19 (DPA) The man regarded as second-in-command of terrorist group Al Qaeda condemned US president-elect Barack Obama Wednesday in the group's first audio message since his election, using racial slurs and calling his victory an 'admission of defeat' in Iraq.

Ayman al-Zawahiri called Obama 'the direct opposite of honorable black Americans' and cited Malcolm X, a controversial figure who preached violence during the civil rights movement in the 1960s.

In a direct message to Obama, al-Zawahiri said: 'You have reached the position of president, and a heavy legacy of failure and crimes awaits you,' according to a transcript provided by the US-based IntelCenter.

The message is Al Qaeda's first with any mention of Obama. The group did not release any videos ahead of the election and there has been no word from Al Qaeda's leader Osama bin Laden, who is believed to be hiding somewhere along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border.

In 2004, Bin Laden released a video shortly before the US election between President George W. Bush and Democrat John Kerry. The message is believed by some to have swung the election in Bush's favour by turning US voters minds back to security issues.

Al-Zawahiri said Obama is 'destined for failure' in Afghanistan and has chosen a 'stance of hostility' towards Muslims owing to his support of Israel, and said Americans' choice to elect a president who advocated a withdrawal from Iraq showed the terrorist group was winning the battle.

'You were born to a Muslim father, but you chose to stand in the ranks of the enemies of the Muslims, and pray the prayer of the Jews, although you claim to be Christian, in order to climb the rungs of leadership in America,' al-Zawahiri said.

Obama was born to a Kenyan father and white mother from Kansas. He is of the Christian faith.