WASHINGTON, June 2 (Xinhua) -- The United States said Friday that a new audiotape carrying voice message of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the al-Qaida chief in Iraq, was confirmed to be authentic,U.S. media reported.

    A CIA spokesman, speaking on the conditions of anonymity, said technical analysis of the tape proved that the voice belongs to Zarqawi, who tries to fan up sectarian violence in Iraq in the tape.

    In the four-hour-long tape, posted on the Internet earlier Friday, the terror chief urged Iraqi Sunnis to retaliate against Shiites.

    It is Zarqawi's first public message since an April 29 videotape, which was apparently aimed at making himself a hero among extremists to brush away criticism over civilian deaths in attacks led by him.

    Some analysts said the new tape was apparently aimed at holdingback Iraq's new government from achieving any reconciliation amongdifferent sectarian groups in the country.

    Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said the tape represents "a futile brutality, depraved mentally and morally," and said the Iraqi people will not listen to "such miserable words."

    Maliki has formed a government of Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds, hoping to ease sectarian violence across the country, but he is still struggling to get the parties to agree on key security postsin the cabinet. Enditem