To what extent was he a titular head, vs. the functional one?
He was certainly the symbolic head Zarqawi and later al-Masri wanted people to see for the insurgency. As for his actual operational power, it was certainly vast, but at the end of the day I think operationally Zarqawi and al Masri were calling the shots.
But, in this war symbolism and PR is just as important as anything else. Getting the President of the Islamic State of Iraq at this point in time would totally discredit the organization and could lead to it breaking up.
I don't care if he was a titular "head" or a "functional" one. All I care about is that he is a "dead head", like Zaraqawi.
I expect a new "job" opening posting will soon be appearing on Al Qaeda in Iraq websites:
Wanted - new leader; job security -none; experience - in surviving; perks - JDAMs at any time. Promotion opportunity - death!
Oh, and 72 virgins who look and smell like Helen Thomas, sound like Rosie O'Donnell, and have the brains of Eva Braun.