DUBAI (Reuters) -- Al Qaeda in Iraq has named a little-known militant to succeed its slain leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, according to an Internet statement on Monday.

"The shura council of al Qaeda in Iraq unanimously agreed on Sheikh Abu Hamza al-Muhajir to be a successor to Sheikh Abu Musab al-Zarqawi," said a statement signed by al Qaeda and posted on a website frequently used by militants.

"Sheikh Abu Hamza al-Muhajir is a good brother, has a history in jihad (holy war) and is knowledgeable. We ask God that he...continue what Sheikh Abu Musab began," said the statement, which could not be immediately authenticated.

Muhajir was not among the names that al Qaeda analysts had expected as a likely successor to Zarqawi, killed last week in a U.S. air raid on his hideout north of Baghdad.

Al Qaeda expert Fares bin Houzam said Muhajir could be a pseudonym for Egyptian militant Abu Ayyub al-Masri, who U.S. officials have said could succeed Zarqawi, or Saudi-born Sheikh Abu Hafs al-Qarni, whom al Qaeda named as Zarqawi's deputy last year in an Internet statement later retracted.

"He might be either Qarni or Masri. What we can tell from the name is that he is not Iraqi because Muhajir means immigrant in Arabic," he said, adding that Muhajir had probably fought in Afghanistan.

"To be the leader of al Qaeda in Iraq is a high-ranking job among jihadists and goes to someone with a lot of experience."

Masri, who had trained in Afghanistan and established the first al Qaeda cell in Baghdad, was a close Zarqawi associate and on a previous list of 29 militants wanted by the U.S. military.

Qarni's name appeared last summer in an al Qaeda Internet statement which said it had appointed him as a deputy to fill in for Zarqawi following reports that Zarqawi had been wounded.

However, it was swiftly denied in a later statement from an al Qaeda group spokesman.

Some al Qaeda pundits have said Zarqawi's successor may be a local figure with close ties to Osama bin Laden, who focuses attacks more on U.S. and Iraqi troops and less on brutal beheadings and random suicide bombings.

Al Qaeda in Iraq has vowed to carry out large-scale attacks that would "shake the enemy" after the killing of its leader. Al Qaeda in Saudi Arabia also said it would continue its jihad in the birthplace of Islam, adding that Zarqawi's death gave it fresh impetus.