CAIRO, Egypt — The militant group al Qaeda in Iraq purportedly called Friday for the release of the kidnapped executive of the CARE charity, Margaret Hassan, and promised to free her if she fell into their hands.

In a message posted on the Internet, the group led by Jordanian terror mastermind Abu Musab al-Zarqawi said it wanted the world to know "if (the kidnappers of Margaret Hassan) handed us this captive, we will release her immediately unless it is proven she was conspiring against Muslims.''

"We are demanding that those who are in charge of her release her unless she is proven to be an agent,'' the message said. "If guilty, they should show that to everybody so as not to attribute something to our religion that is alien to it.''

The authenticity of the statement could not be verified, but it was signed "al Qaeda in Iraq'' and appeared on a website known for publishing messages from Islamic militant groups. The person who posted it used the pseudonym Abu Maysara al-Iraqi -- the name usually associated with statements from al-Zarqawi's group.

The statement appeared three days after a video was broadcast in which Hassan's kidnappers said Britain had 48 hours to withdraw its troops from Iraq or they would transfer her to al Qaeda in Iraq.

Al Qaeda in Iraq, which until recently called itself Tawhid and Jihad, has claimed responsibility for beheading a number of western hostages, such as American businessman Nick Berg and British civil engineer Kenneth Bigley. It also claimed responsibility for a series of major vehicle bombings, such as last year's attack on UN headquarters in Baghdad.

Hassan, director of CARE International in Iraq, was kidnapped Oct. 19 as she drove to work in Baghdad. Patients at a hospital run by CARE staged a demonstration calling for the release of the 59-year-old, who has Irish, British and Iraqi citizenship.

Videos of Hassan in captivity have been released, but no group has claimed responsibility for her abduction. In two of the videos, Hassan pleads for her life, saying she fears she will be beheaded.

For the first time in a statement purportedly from al-Zarqawi's band, Friday's message took pains to defend the group's actions, suggesting that the militants wanted to distance themselves from their reputation as terrorists who kill hostages and detonate car bombs that kill dozens of Iraqi civilians.

"We are not lovers of war or destruction,'' the statement said. "We don't adore blood and rejoice when it is spilled.

"We changed the plans for a number of decisive operations against the enemy because of the presence of a Muslim who would have been killed by the explosions, and we cancelled martyrdom (suicide) operations out of concern for the blood of Muslim passersby.''

In a reference to westerners and their Muslim critics, the message says: "When the infidels and apostates claim that the holy warriors are killing innocents and spilling their blood, this is a deceit of the mean.''

The statement criticized the abduction of Hassan, saying: "God has taught us not to harm the women who don't fight us ... Those who are using the captive as a playing card don't know our religion well.''

The message indicated al Qaeda in Iraq objected to the kidnappers' saying they would hand Hassan over to the group. "There is no meaning in trying to outbid us and wave our name around,'' the statement said.

More than 170 foreigners have been kidnapped in Iraq since Saddam Hussein's regime fell in April 2003. More than 30 foreign hostages have been killed. Some kidnapping groups seek ransom, while others pursue political motives such as the withdrawal of foreign companies and troops from Iraq.