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An intelligence report declassified in the U.S. on Tuesday concludes that the war in Iraq has become a “cause celebre,” helping spread jihadist sentiment worldwide.

The report, which U.S. President George W. Bush declassified, said in one of its judgments that while the leadership and operations of al-Qaeda have been disrupted, they will continue to pose the greatest threat to U.S. safety and security.

But it also acknowledged that other like-minded groups are a threat, as a result of resentment in the Muslim world over the U.S. presence in Iraq.

“We assess that the Iraq jihad is shaping a new generation of terrorist leaders and operatives; perceived jihadist success there would inspire more fighters to continue the struggle elsewhere,” the report said.

The April report, titled Trends in Global Terrorism: Implications for the United States, concluded jihadist networks are becoming more diffuse, which it is estimated will make them harder to find.

‘Make up your own mind’

Bush said earlier Tuesday that he wanted people to have direct access to the document rather than gossip.

Bush, who made the announcement during a joint news conference with Afghanistan’s president, Hamid Karzai, appeared slightly agitated when asked about the report, which was leaked in the Sunday editions of the New York Times and the Washington Post.

Bush said he would declassify the document so that people could read it themselves and make their own judgments, instead of relying on gossip and speculation.

“I want you to read it so you can make up your own mind,” said Bush.

The president also noted it was “interesting” that the report was leaked in the final stretch of the mid-term election campaign.

The National Intelligence Estimate report is a consensus view of 16 separate spy agencies, including the CIA. It was an NIE report in October 2002 that wrongly said former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction.

Karzai praises U.S. efforts

Bush said it’s “naive” to think that supporting the war in Iraq has fanned the flames of terrorism.

“Some people have guessed what’s in the report and concluded that going into Iraq was a mistake. I strongly disagree,” said Bush.

“I think it’s a mistake for people to believe that going on the offence against people that want to do harm to the American people makes us less safe.”

Karzai, who will meet with Bush and Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, praised American and coalition efforts in Afghanistan. The U.S. has helped rebuild roads, further democracy, create a parliament and encourage good governance, said Karzai.

“There’s nothing more that any nation can do for another country,” said Karzai, who visited Canada last week and addressed Parliament.

Karzai, Musharraf at odds

Bush joked about Wednesday evening’s dinner with Musharraf and Karzai, who have been at odds recently over each country’s efforts to hunt terrorists and to stop them from crossing their shared border, especially in tribal areas.

Roughly 2,000 Canadian troops are in Afghanistan, serving in a NATO-led force of more than 20,000 and an additional 20,000 U.S. soldiers.

Karzai has said Pakistan must put a stop to hardline Islamic schools, which, he said, cultivate hatred and provide the training grounds for terrorism.

Musharraf responded by saying the Western-educated Karzai needs to better understand his country before he can lessen the influence of the Taliban.

Bush joked that he’d be watching their body language.

“You know, it’ll be interesting for me to watch the body language of these two leaders to determine how tense things are,” Bush said.

“I’ll be good,” Karzai said.

Musharraf made headlines last week when he told a U.S. television news program that American officials had threatened to bomb Pakistan back to the Stone Age unless it assisted with the U.S.-led war on terror.

Bush denied knowing anything about the alleged threat.