Take into consideration what we DO know:
*There have been AT LEAST 13 statements have allegedly been issued by bin Laden since the 9/11 Attacks
*At least 6 of these were videos
*At least 7 of these were audio recordings
*At least 9 out of those 13 were obtained initially by Al-Jazeera (an Arabic news/television network headquartered in Doha, Qatar).
*The authenticity of some of these tapes is an ongoing dispute for some.
*At least one of the videotapes was obtained by U.S. military forces in Afghanistan and released on December 13, 2001 through the Pentagon – the CIA officially stated that it was “probably” authentic.
*Bin Laden denied involvement with the 9/11 attacks five days later on the Al-Jazeera satellite channel. The Bush administration urged media in the U.S. not to show the video as they claimed it might contain signals to other elements of al-Qaeda.
*Many of the statements have been seen by viewers of Al-Jazeera. Less Americans have seen the statements. Less Americans have doubted the authenticity of the statements.
*Al-Jazeera has been threatened for showing the speech (audio/visual) of Bin Laden for fear that it might incite followers.
*Bin Laden has used his speech to persuade followers.
*The Bush administration has used his speech as further justification for the War on Terror.
Aims of the bin Laden Speech research project:
-More intense search for access to bin Laden speech
-Deeper analysis of the content of the speech
-Deeper analysis of what is available to the public – what has been excluded by American media
-Deeper analysis of what impact the speech might have on different audiences
-More analysis of the significance of bin Laden’s speech for all participants in the War on Terror (Americans, Muslims, the Bush administration, terrorists, etc).
-Philosophical connections between bin Laden speech and theory of Free Speech
Monday, March 19, 2007
Timeline and Contradictions (Wikipedia)
Timeline and contradictions
On September 16, 2001 Osama bin Laden issued the following statement via al Jazeera in reference to the 9/11 attacks: "I stress that I have not carried out this act, which appears to have been carried out by individuals with their own motivation." [8]
On December 9, 2001 U.S. military forces in Jalalabad found a video tape of bin Laden[9].
On December 27, 2001, a second bin Laden video was broadcast on al Jazeera [10]. The tape was reportedly made after November 16, 2001 [11]. There were notable differences in the appearance of bin Laden in the two tapes, although it is notable that they were shot under very different lighting conditions and that the quality of the Jalalabad tape is not very good, making direct comparisons somewhat less than reliable.
Some accounts claimed bin Laden was suffering from Hepatitis C, [12] and Peter Bergen said: “ This is a man who was clearly not well. I mean, as you see from these pictures here, he's really, by December [2001] he's looking pretty terrible. … he's barely moving the left side of his body. So he's clearly got diabetes. He has low blood pressure. He's got a wound in his foot. He's apparently got dialysis ... for kidney problems. :"He could already be dead, but we need to keep searching for him" [13]
The recording was dismissed by the Bush administration as propaganda possibly designed to mask the fact the Al-Qaeda leader was already dead. "He could have made the video and then ordered that it be released in the event of his death," said one White House aide. [14]
Other prominent figures expressed confusion on bin Laden's status. In January 2002, Pakistan’s President Pervez Musharraf stated "I would give the first priority that he is dead and the second priority that he is alive somewhere in Afghanistan." [15] In October 2002, Afghanistan’s President Hamid Karzai said "I would come to believe that [bin Laden] probably is dead. But still, you never know. He might be alive. Five months ago, six months ago, I was thinking that he was alive. The more we don't hear of him, and the more time passes, there is the likelihood that he probably is either dead or seriously wounded somewhere".[16] In July 2002, US Federal Bureau of Investigation's counter-terrorism chief, Dale Watson , stated "Is (Bin Laden) alive or is he dead? I am not really sure of the answer... I personally think he is probably not with us anymore but I have no evidence to support that." [17]
On December 26, 2001 FOXNews reported “Usama bin Laden has died a peaceful death due to an untreated lung complication, the Pakistan Observer reported, citing a Taliban leader who allegedly attended the funeral of the Al-Qaeda leader.” [18] The World Tribune subsequently reported “Israel and the United States assess that Bin Laden probably died in the U.S. military campaign in Afghanistan in December [2001]. They said the emergence of new messages by Bin Laden are probably fabrications.” [19]
On September 9, 2002 an audio tape made by bin Laden was broadcast on al Jazeera. [20] US intelligence officials concluded the tape was genuine [21], as did French researcher Bernard Gautheron, director of the phonetic testing laboratory at the Institute of Linguistics and Phonetics in Paris [22]. Researchers at the Dalle Molle Institute for Perceptual Artificial Intelligence, in Martigny, Switzerland, claimed they were 95% sure the recording was a fake [23], but they since have refused to evaluate subsequent tapes [24].
On February 12, 2003, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell told a Senate panel that he had reviewed a transcript of a message from bin Laden stating he was “partnership with Iraq" which was to be broadcast on al Jazeera. [25] Al Jazeera initially denied having the tape, [26] but subsequently located it. [27]
Taken from the 29/10/2004 Osama bin Laden video.
On October 29, 2004, two days before the US elections, the Arab television network al Jazeera broadcast a videotape apparently showing bin Laden addressing the people of the United States. In this video he appears to take credit for the idea to attack the WTC towers. He also condemns the Bush government's response to the attacks, and presents the attacks as part of a campaign of revenge and deterrence begun after personally seeing the destruction of the Lebanese Civil War in 1982. See 2004 Osama bin Laden video.
Walter Cronkite said of the video “I'm a little inclined to think that Karl Rove, the political manager at the White House, who is a very clever man, he probably set up bin Laden to this thing.” [28] President Bush opened up a six-point lead over John Kerry in the first opinion poll to include sampling taken after the videotape was broadcast. [29]
On 23 May 2006, another audiotape purportedly of bin Laden surfaced on the Internet. On the tape bin Laden claims that it was he alone who assigned the hijackers to perform the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States and that Zacarias Moussaoui had nothing to do with the 9/11 attacks. "He had no connection at all with Sept. 11. I am the one in charge of the 19 brothers and I never assigned brother Zacarias to be with them in that mission. I am certain of what I say because I was responsible for entrusting the 19 brothers ... with the raids," said bin Laden who was speaking about the 9/11 hijackers. He also claimed that all of the detainees held at Guantanamo Bay had nothing to do with the September 11th attacks"[30].
On September 16, 2001 Osama bin Laden issued the following statement via al Jazeera in reference to the 9/11 attacks: "I stress that I have not carried out this act, which appears to have been carried out by individuals with their own motivation." [8]
On December 9, 2001 U.S. military forces in Jalalabad found a video tape of bin Laden[9].
On December 27, 2001, a second bin Laden video was broadcast on al Jazeera [10]. The tape was reportedly made after November 16, 2001 [11]. There were notable differences in the appearance of bin Laden in the two tapes, although it is notable that they were shot under very different lighting conditions and that the quality of the Jalalabad tape is not very good, making direct comparisons somewhat less than reliable.
Some accounts claimed bin Laden was suffering from Hepatitis C, [12] and Peter Bergen said: “ This is a man who was clearly not well. I mean, as you see from these pictures here, he's really, by December [2001] he's looking pretty terrible. … he's barely moving the left side of his body. So he's clearly got diabetes. He has low blood pressure. He's got a wound in his foot. He's apparently got dialysis ... for kidney problems. :"He could already be dead, but we need to keep searching for him" [13]
The recording was dismissed by the Bush administration as propaganda possibly designed to mask the fact the Al-Qaeda leader was already dead. "He could have made the video and then ordered that it be released in the event of his death," said one White House aide. [14]
Other prominent figures expressed confusion on bin Laden's status. In January 2002, Pakistan’s President Pervez Musharraf stated "I would give the first priority that he is dead and the second priority that he is alive somewhere in Afghanistan." [15] In October 2002, Afghanistan’s President Hamid Karzai said "I would come to believe that [bin Laden] probably is dead. But still, you never know. He might be alive. Five months ago, six months ago, I was thinking that he was alive. The more we don't hear of him, and the more time passes, there is the likelihood that he probably is either dead or seriously wounded somewhere".[16] In July 2002, US Federal Bureau of Investigation's counter-terrorism chief, Dale Watson , stated "Is (Bin Laden) alive or is he dead? I am not really sure of the answer... I personally think he is probably not with us anymore but I have no evidence to support that." [17]
On December 26, 2001 FOXNews reported “Usama bin Laden has died a peaceful death due to an untreated lung complication, the Pakistan Observer reported, citing a Taliban leader who allegedly attended the funeral of the Al-Qaeda leader.” [18] The World Tribune subsequently reported “Israel and the United States assess that Bin Laden probably died in the U.S. military campaign in Afghanistan in December [2001]. They said the emergence of new messages by Bin Laden are probably fabrications.” [19]
On September 9, 2002 an audio tape made by bin Laden was broadcast on al Jazeera. [20] US intelligence officials concluded the tape was genuine [21], as did French researcher Bernard Gautheron, director of the phonetic testing laboratory at the Institute of Linguistics and Phonetics in Paris [22]. Researchers at the Dalle Molle Institute for Perceptual Artificial Intelligence, in Martigny, Switzerland, claimed they were 95% sure the recording was a fake [23], but they since have refused to evaluate subsequent tapes [24].
On February 12, 2003, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell told a Senate panel that he had reviewed a transcript of a message from bin Laden stating he was “partnership with Iraq" which was to be broadcast on al Jazeera. [25] Al Jazeera initially denied having the tape, [26] but subsequently located it. [27]
Taken from the 29/10/2004 Osama bin Laden video.
On October 29, 2004, two days before the US elections, the Arab television network al Jazeera broadcast a videotape apparently showing bin Laden addressing the people of the United States. In this video he appears to take credit for the idea to attack the WTC towers. He also condemns the Bush government's response to the attacks, and presents the attacks as part of a campaign of revenge and deterrence begun after personally seeing the destruction of the Lebanese Civil War in 1982. See 2004 Osama bin Laden video.
Walter Cronkite said of the video “I'm a little inclined to think that Karl Rove, the political manager at the White House, who is a very clever man, he probably set up bin Laden to this thing.” [28] President Bush opened up a six-point lead over John Kerry in the first opinion poll to include sampling taken after the videotape was broadcast. [29]
On 23 May 2006, another audiotape purportedly of bin Laden surfaced on the Internet. On the tape bin Laden claims that it was he alone who assigned the hijackers to perform the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States and that Zacarias Moussaoui had nothing to do with the 9/11 attacks. "He had no connection at all with Sept. 11. I am the one in charge of the 19 brothers and I never assigned brother Zacarias to be with them in that mission. I am certain of what I say because I was responsible for entrusting the 19 brothers ... with the raids," said bin Laden who was speaking about the 9/11 hijackers. He also claimed that all of the detainees held at Guantanamo Bay had nothing to do with the September 11th attacks"[30].
Tapes Released By Al-Jazeera (Wikipedia)
Many of the Osama bin Laden tapes have been released directly (by mail or messenger) to Arabic language satellite television networks like Al Jazeera or Al Araabiya:
October 29, 2004
Main article: 2004 bin Laden video
On 29 October 2004, Arab television network Al Jazeera broadcast a video tape, 18 minutes in length, of what appears to be Osama bin Laden, addressing citizens of the United States. According to the English translation distributed by the media, he seems to suggest that the September 11, 2001 attacks were his idea and that he agreed with Mohammed Atta on how to carry them out. The release of the tape was reportedly timed to come just four days before the 2004 U.S. presidential election.
January 19, 2006
Main article: 19 January 2006 Osama bin Laden tape
On 19 January 2006, Al Jazeera broadcast an audiotape of Osama bin Laden again addressing citizens of the United States [5].
April 23, 2006
On 23 April 2006, Al Jazeera broadcast parts of an audiotape. On this tape bin Laden accuses the Western world of waging a Zionist crusade against Islam [6]. He comments on Hamas, Darfur and the situation in Iraq:
"Purported bin Laden tape denounces West's response to Hamas
Message calls for supporters to fight peacekeepers in Sudan
(CNN) -- A newly broadcast audiotape believed to be from Osama bin Laden slams the West for cutting off funds to the Palestinian Hamas-led government and calls on al Qaeda followers to fight a proposed international force in Sudan.
In the tape, aired Sunday in part on Arabic-language TV network Al-Jazeera, the speaker repeatedly blasts a "crusader-Zionist war" against Islam, citing other activities in Chechnya and Somalia.
Al-Jazeera, which is based in Qatar, said the new tape is from bin Laden. And White House spokesman Scott McClellan said U.S. officials believe it is bin Laden's voice. (Watch new anger at U.S. citizens from the taped speaker -- 2:50)
"The intelligence community has informed the president that they believe this is authentic," he said.
"The al Qaeda leadership is on the run and under a lot of pressure," he said. "We are advancing, they are on the run, and we won't let up. We will prevail and it's important to use all tools at our disposal." (CNN analyst Peter Bergen: Bin Laden wants to show he's still influential -- 5:21)
On the tape, bin Laden says "the opposition to the Hamas government is proof of the crusade against Muslims."
Bin Laden and other al Qaeda figures use the term "crusaders" to refer to Christians.
He also says on the new tape that any such war "is the joint responsibility of the people and the government."
Responding to the tape, Hamas spokesman Sam Abu Zuhri said Hamas has "a different ideology" than that of al Qaeda.
The remarks about the halting of funds suggest the tape is relatively recent. The United States and some other Western nations have officially stopped contributions to the Palestinian government since Hamas assumed power March 30. Humanitarian aid isinstead donated through nongovernmental organizations.
The militant wing of Hamas has carried out numerous terrorist attacks in recent years, killing many civilians. Israel and the U.S. State Department consider Hamas a terrorist organization, though it also operates an extensive social services network in the territories.
The United States and European Union have called on the Hamas-led government to end terrorist attacks and recognize Israel's right to exist.
Tape calls for Sudan war
On the tape, bin Laden slammed U.S. and British efforts and their past actions in Sudan, where bin Laden lived in the mid-1990s before being expelled by the Sudanese government.
"I call on the mujahedeen [Islamic fighters] and their supporters, especially in Sudan and the Arabian peninsula, to prepare for a long war against the crusaders and plunderers in western Sudan. Our goal is not defending the Khartoum government but [to] defend Islam, its land and its people," the speaker said.
A civil war has destroyed much of western Sudan and left hundreds of thousands dead. Arab militias have carried out torture, widespread killings and rapes, particularly in the nation's Darfur region.
The United States and many human rights groups have declared a "genocide" in the region, although the United Nations stopped short of that term. Sudan denies a genocide and widespread accusations that the militias have government backing.
A U.N. peacekeeping force is set to take over efforts from the African Union in September.
Al-Jazeera reported that on the tape, bin Laden also refers to the controversy over cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammed, saying, "I am urging Muslims to boycott the products of Western countries, including the United States, which backed Denmark" after the cartoons were published by a Danish newspaper.
This section of the tape was not played on Al-Jazeera, however.
No recent appearances on video
Unlike recent messages, the tape attributed to bin Laden says he holds American and Western citizens -- not just their governments -- responsible for conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
"Any war is the joint responsibility of the people and the government," the tape says.
The most recent previous audiotape attributed to bin Laden was heard in January. In it, the speaker says plans for terror attacks are under way -- and also offers a "long-term truce."
"The war against America and its allies will not be confined to Iraq," the voice on the January tape says, adding that "Iraq has become a magnet for attracting and training talented fighters." (Full story)
"It's only a matter of time," the voice says, referring to attacks. "They are in the planning stages, and you will see them in the heart of your land as soon as the planning is complete."
The last videotaped message from bin Laden was seen just before the U.S. presidential election in 2004. That was his first known videotaped message in three years.
Analysts have speculated on the reasons that only audiotapes have been released since then. Bin Laden has been rumored to have faced health troubles or to have been wounded in an attack, although nothing conclusive has been found.
He is believed to be hiding somewhere in the mountainous region of the Pakistani-Afghan border. The United States has posted a $25 million reward for his capture.
Several Democratic U.S. lawmakers on Sunday pointed to the tape as a sign that the Bush administration has wasted efforts in Iraq instead of adequately cracking down on al Qaeda. (Full story)
CNN's Caroline Faraj, Octavia Nasr, Nic Robertson and Henry Schuster contributed to this report.
Find this article at:
http://edition.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/04/23/binladen.tape/index.html"
May 23rd, 2006
On May 23rd 2006 Al Jazeera broadcasted a 5 minute audiotape from bin Laden. On this tape bin Laden commented on the trial of Zacarias Moussaoui, the prisoners in Guantanamo Bay and the imprisoned journalists Sami al-Hajj and Tayssir Alouni. He denied that any of these (apart from a few Guantanamo Bay prisoners) were connected with Al-Qaeda. [8]
"Alleged bin Laden tape: Moussaoui not part of 9/11
Voice on tape says two Guantanamo detainees knew of plot
(CNN) -- A Web site message purportedly from Osama bin Laden says admitted al Qaeda follower Zacarias Moussaoui had nothing to do with the attacks of September 11, 2001.
"I am certain of what I say, because I was responsible for entrusting the 19 brothers -- Allah have mercy upon them -- with those raids, and I did not assign brother Zacarias to be with them on that mission," the taped statement says.
"And his confession that he was assigned to participate in those raids is a false confession, which no intelligent person doubts is a result of the pressure put upon him for the past four and a half years."
If the tape is confirmed as authentic, it would be the first time that bin Laden has claimed to have personally assigned the jobs for 9/11. (Watch what's on the tape about 9/11 terrorists -- 2:13)
The audio message, addressed to the American people in Arabic with English subtitles, was posted on a Web site that typically carries such messages.
Earlier this month, a federal jury sentenced Moussaoui to life in prison without parole for his connection to the attacks. Although he was not charged with direct involvement in the plot, prosecutors had sought the death penalty.
Moussaoui, a French citizen of Moroccan descent, pleaded guilty more than a year ago to six counts of terrorism conspiracy related to the attacks.
He was caught two weeks before September 11 when he aroused the suspicions of a flight instructor in Minnesota from whom he was taking flying lessons.
Although he had previously said he had no knowledge of the attacks, Moussaoui testified during his sentencing trial that he was to have piloted a fifth plane.
He said Richard Reid, who tried to blow up an airplane in December 2001 with explosives hidden in his shoes, would have been part of his crew.
Prosecutors at the trial agreed to a defense stipulation that al Qaeda leaders never assigned Moussaoui and Reid to work together on any terrorist operation.
"If Moussaoui was studying aviation to become a pilot of one of the planes, then let him tell us the names of those assigned to help him control the plane," the purported bin Laden tape says.
"But he won't be able to tell us their names for a simple reason: that in fact they don't exist."
CNN is unable to independently verify that the voice on the tape is bin Laden's; a U.S. intelligence official told CNN the recording is being checked to verify its authenticity. (Watch how analysts gather clues from images and audio -- 5:02)
A U.S. counterterrorism official told CNN that "there is no reason to doubt that it is him." The official characterized the tape as "a propaganda tape" and "an effort to be relevant, to show he's knowledgeable about recent events."
The tape also mentions prisoners held at the U.S. Navy detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, saying "all the prisoners to date have no connection with the events of September 11 and knew nothing about them, with the exception of two of the brothers, may Allah free them all."
The tape does not name the two "brothers" who supposedly knew about the attacks.
The tape further says that the Bush administration is aware that none of the Guantanamo prisoners have any connection to the attacks, "but they avoid mentioning it" to justify the Defense Department's budget.
About 500 detainees from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq are being held at the facility.
Unlike two previous tapes from bin Laden, this one does not threaten any new attacks. Instead, it offers a way "to safety and security."
"My mentioning of these facts isn't out of hope that Bush and his party will treat our brothers fairly in their cases, because that is something no rational person expects," it says.
"But rather it is meant to expose the oppression, injustice and arbitrariness of your administration in using force and the reactions that result from that."
"This is from one perspective, and from another perspective, perhaps there will one day come from the Americans someone who desires justice and fairness, and that is the path to security and safety, if you are interested in it," the tape says.
Last month, the complete version of what had been bin Laden's most recent audio message appeared on Islamist Web sites, four days after excerpts were broadcast on the Arabic-language TV channel Al-Jazeera.
In that message, al Qaeda's leader focused much of his almost 52-minute message on what he continually referred to as "a Zionist-crusader war on Islam," which he said was shown most explicitly by cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed that were published by a Danish newspaper in late 2005 and later reprinted around the world.
In that message, bin Laden also attacked the Western public for its support of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, blasted Western governments for cutting off aid to Hamas and called for jihad in the Sudanese region of Darfur.
CNN's David Ensor contributed to this report." http://edition.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/05/23/binladen.tape/index.html
June 30, 2006
On June 30, 2006, an Islamist website posted a recording in which bin Laden praised Abu Musab al-Zarqawi as a "lion of holy war". The nineteen-minute video shows a still picture of Bin Laden next to video celebrating al-Zarqawi. US officials said the tape was authentic. [9]
"New Bin Laden message is released
A new recording from al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden has been posted on an Islamist website.
He praised Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq killed three weeks ago, as a "lion of holy war".
The video, lasting 19 minutes, shows a still picture of Bin Laden, and moving pictures of al-Zarqawi.
Unnamed US officials said the recording was authentic. It is the fourth audio message Bin Laden has released since the start of this year.
However, no new video images of the al-Qaeda leader have appeared since October 2004.
Last week a video was broadcast purportedly showing the deputy leader of al-Qaeda, Ayman al-Zawahri, in which he paid tribute to Zarqawi and said his death would be avenged.
Universal fight
In the latest recording, Bin Laden addresses US President George W Bush, warning him not to be "too happy" about Zarqawi's death, "for the banner [of al-Qaeda in Iraq] hasn't dropped but has passed from one lion of Islam to another lion".
Bin Laden says al-Qaeda will go on with operations against the US and its allies.
"We will continue, God willing, to fight you and your allies everywhere," he said, "in Iraq and Afghanistan and in Somalia and Sudan until we waste all your money and kill your men."
In an apparent reference to a campaign against Iraq's Shias by Zarqawi, Bin Laden addressed "those who accuse Abu Musab of killing certain sectors of the Iraqi people".
"Abu Musab had clear instructions to focus his fight on the occupiers," he went on, "particularly the Americans and to leave aside anyone who remains neutral."
He called on President Bush to return Zarqawi's body to his family, and used rhyming couplets to eulogise the dead al-Qaeda leader." http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/middle_east/5131818.stm
September 7, 2006
On September 7th, 2006 another tape was released to al-Jazeera. [7] This video was released four days prior to the fifth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. It was also suggested by Michael P. Jackson, Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security, that this video could have possibly been a signal to Al-Qaeda supporters in the United States to initiate a terrorist attack on the fifth anniversary of 9/11. However no such attacks came to pass.
"Bin Laden '9/11 video' broadcast
Al-Jazeera did not say how it obtained the tape
Arabic TV channel Al-Jazeera has broadcast what it says is unseen footage of Osama Bin Laden meeting some of the 9/11 hijackers.
The channel said it showed al-Qaeda leaders "preparing for the attacks and practising their execution".
Bin Laden is seen walking outdoors in a mountainous area wearing a dark robe and white head gear.
The broadcast came four days before the fifth anniversary of the 11 September 2001 attacks.
'Suicide' videos
The footage also shows the al-Qaeda leader meeting senior figures Ramzi Binalshibh and Mohammed Atef in what al-Jazeera said were the mountains of Afghanistan.
Binalshibh was captured in 2002 and Atef was killed by a US air strike in Afghanistan in late 2001.
The BBC's Adam Brookes in Washington says it appears to be a meeting held just a few days before the 9/11 attacks took place.
He says that although there will be little current intelligence to be gleaned from the videotape, the images and their ghostly quality serve as reminders of the intricacy and potency of the 9/11 plot.
Al-Jazeera also showed a tape said to be of the new al-Qaeda leader in Iraq urging Iraqis to join with insurgents.
The speaker on the tape, identified as Abu Hamza al-Muhajir, says he is confident victory will be achieved.
Muhajir is said to have taken over al-Qaeda in Iraq after the killing of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in June.
Muhajir tells US forces not to be "proud of the number and the equipment", adding: "The war has just begun."
Al-Jazeera also showed "suicide" videos by Wael al-Shihri and Hamza al-Ghamdi, two of the hijackers who crashed planes into the World Trade Center.
The station did not say how it obtained the videos.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/middle_east/5325590.stm
Published: 2006/09/07 22:15:55 GMT
© BBC MMVII"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Videos_of_Osama_bin_Laden
December 13, 2001 (Wikipedia)
December 13, 2001
On December 13, 2001, the United States State Department released a video tape apparently showing Osama bin Laden speaking with Khaled al-Harbi and other associates, somewhere in Afghanistan, before the U.S. invasion had driven the Taliban regime from Kandahar. The State Department claimed that the tape is authentic and was captured by U.S. forces in Afghanistan during a raid on a house in Jalalabad.[5] The tape appears to implicate bin Laden in the September 11, 2001 attacks and was aired on many television channels all over the world, with an accompanying English translation provided by the United States Defense Department. In this translation, Osama bin Laden displays knowledge of the timing of the actual attack a few days in advance; the translation attributes the following lines to bin Laden:
"we calculated in advance the number of casualties from the enemy, who would be killed based on the position of the tower. We calculated that the floors that would be hit would be three or four floors. I was the most optimistic of them all...We had notification since the previous Thursday that the event would take place that day. We had finished our work that day and had the radio on...Muhammad (Atta) from the Egyptian family (meaning the Al Qaida Egyptian group), was in charge of the group...The brothers, who conducted the operation, all they knew was that they have a martyrdom operation and we asked each of them to go to America but they didn't know anything about the operation, not even one letter. But they were trained and we did not reveal the operation to them until they are there and just before they boarded the planes."[6]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Videos_of_Osama_bin_Laden#_note-1
Official English translation as provided by the Defense Department:
Page 1 of 7
TRANSCRIPT OF USAMA BIN LADEN VIDEO TAPE
(Transcript and annotations independently prepared by George Michael,
translator, Diplomatic Language Services; and Dr. Kassem M. Wahba, Arabic language
program coordinator, School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins
University. They collaborated on their translation and compared it with translations done
by the U.S. government for consistency. There were no inconsistencies in the
translations.)
In mid-November, Usama Bin Laden spoke to a room of supporters, possibly in
Qandahar, Afghanistan. These comments were video taped with the knowledge of Bin
Laden and all present.
Note: The tape is approximately one hour long and contains three different
segments: an original taping of a visit by some people to the site of the downed U.S.
helicopter in Ghazni province (approximately 12 minutes long); and two segments
documenting a courtesy visit by Bin Laden and his lieutenants to an unidentified Shaykh,
who appears crippled from the waist down. The visit apparently takes place at a
guesthouse in Qandahar. The sequence of the events is reversed on the tape—the end of
his visit is in the beginning of the tape with the helicopter site visit in the middle and the
start of the Usama bin Laden visit beginning approximately 39 minutes into the tape. The
tape is transcribed below according to the proper sequence of events.
Due to the quality of the original tape, it is NOT a verbatim transcript of every
word spoken during the meeting, but does convey the messages and information flow.
EDITOR’S NOTE: 39 minutes into tape, first segment of the bin Laden meeting, begins
after footage of helicopter site visit
Shaykh: (...inaudible...) You have given us weapons, you have given us hope and we
thank Allah for you. We don’t want to take much of your time, but this is the
arrangement of the brothers. People now are supporting us more, even those ones who
did not support us in the past, support us more now. I did not want to take that much of
your time. We praise Allah, we praise Allah. We came from Kabul. We were very
pleased to visit. May Allah bless you both at home and the camp. We asked the driver to
take us, it was a night with a full moon, thanks be to Allah. Believe me it is not in the
country side. The elderly...everybody praises what you did, the great action you did,
which was first and foremost by the grace of Allah. This is the guidance of Allah and the
blessed fruit of jihad.
UBL: Thanks to Allah. What is the stand of the Mosques there (in Saudi Arabia)?
Shaykh: Honestly, they are very positive. Shaykh Al-Bahrani (phonetic) gave a good
sermon in his class after the sunset prayers. It was videotaped and I was supposed to
carry it with me, but unfortunately, I had to leave immediately.
UBL: The day of the events?
December 13, 2001
Page 2 of 7
Shaykh: At the exact time of the attack on America, precisely at the time. He (Bahrani)
gave a very impressive sermon. Thanks be to Allah for his blessings. He (Bahrani) was
the first one to write at war time. I visited him twice in Al-Qasim.
UBL: Thanks be to Allah.
Shaykh: This is what I asked from Allah. He (Bahrani) told the youth: “You are asking
for martyrdom and wonder where you should go (for martyrdom)?” Allah was inciting
them to go. I asked Allah to grant me to witness the truth in front of the unjust ruler. We
ask Allah to protect him and give him the martyrdom, after he issued the first fatwa. He
was detained for interrogation, as you know. When he was called in and asked to sign, he
told them, "don’t waste my time, I have another fatwa. If you want me, I can sign both at
the same time."
UBL: Thanks be to Allah.
Shaykh: His position is really very encouraging. When I paid him the first visit about a
year and half ago, he asked me, “How is Shaykh Bin-Ladin?” He sends you his special
regards. As far as Shaykh Sulayman ‘Ulwan is concerned, he gave a beautiful fatwa,
may Allah bless him. Miraculously, I heard it on the Quran radio station. It was strange
because he (‘Ulwan) sacrificed his position, which is equivalent to a director. It was
transcribed word-by-word. The brothers listened to it in detail. I briefly heard it before
the noon prayers. He (‘Ulwan) said this was jihad and those people were not innocent
people (World Trade Center and Pentagon victims). He swore to Allah. This was
transmitted to Shaykh Sulayman Al ((‘Umar)) Allah bless him.
UBL: What about Shaykh Al-((Rayan))?
Shaykh: Honestly, I did not meet with him. My movements were truly limited.
UBL: Allah bless you. You are welcome.
Shaykh: (Describing the trip to the meeting) They smuggled us and then I thought that
we would be in different caves inside the mountains so I was surprised at the guest house
and that it is very clean and comfortable. Thanks be to Allah, we also learned that this
location is safe, by Allah’s blessings. The place is clean and we are very comfortable.
UBL: (...Inaudible...) when people see a strong horse and a weak horse, by nature, they
will like the strong horse. This is only one goal; those who want people to worship the
lord of the people, without following that doctrine, will be following the doctrine of
Muhammad, peace be upon him.
(UBL quotes several short and incomplete Hadith verses, as follows):
“I was ordered to fight the people until they say there is no god but Allah, and his prophet
December 13, 2001
Page 3 of 7
Muhammad.”
“Some people may ask: why do you want to fight us?”
“There is an association between those who say: I believe in one god and Muhammad is
his prophet, and those who don’t (...inaudible...)
“Those who do not follow the true fiqh. The fiqh of Muhammad, the real fiqh. They are
just accepting what is being said at face value.”
UBL: Those youth who conducted the operations did not accept any fiqh in the popular
terms, but they accepted the fiqh that the prophet Muhammad brought. Those young men
(...inaudible...) said in deeds, in New York and Washington, speeches that overshadowed
all other speeches made everywhere else in the world. The speeches are understood by
both Arabs and non-Arabs–even by Chinese. It is above all the media said. Some of
them said that in Holland, at one of the centers, the number of people who accepted Islam
during the days that followed the operations were more than the people who accepted
Islam in the last eleven years. I heard someone on Islamic radio who owns a school in
America say: “We don’t have time to keep up with the demands of those who are asking
about Islamic books to learn about Islam.” This event made people think (about true
Islam) which benefited Islam greatly.
Shaykh: Hundreds of people used to doubt you and few only would follow you until this
huge event happened. Now hundreds of people are coming out to join you. I remember a
vision by Shaykh Salih Al-((Shuaybi)). He said: “There will be a great hit and people
will go out by hundreds to Afghanistan.” I asked him (Salih): “To Afghanistan?” He
replied, “Yes.” According to him, the only ones who stay behind will be the mentally
impotent and the liars (hypocrites). I remembered his saying that hundreds of people will
go out to Afghanistan. He had this vision a year ago. This event discriminated between
the different types of followers.
UBL: (...Inaudible...) we calculated in advance the number of casualties from the enemy,
who would be killed based on the position of the tower. We calculated that the floors that
would be hit would be three or four floors. I was the most optimistic of them all.
(...Inaudible...) due to my experience in this field, I was thinking that the fire from the gas
in the plane would melt the iron structure of the building and collapse the area where the
plane hit and all the floors above it only. This is all that we had hoped for.
Shaykh: Allah be praised.
UBL: We were at (...inaudible...) when the event took place. We had notification since
the previous Thursday that the event would take place that day. We had finished our
work that day and had the radio on. It was 5:30 p.m. our time. I was sitting with Dr.
Ahmad Abu-al-((Khair)). Immediately, we heard the news that a plane had hit the World
Trade Center. We turned the radio station to the news from Washington. The news
continued and no mention of the attack until the end. At the end of the newscast, they
December 13, 2001
Page 4 of 7
reported that a plane just hit the World Trade Center.
Shaykh: Allah be praised.
UBL: After a little while, they announced that another plane had hit the World Trade
Center. The brothers who heard the news were overjoyed by it.
Shaykh: I listened to the news and I was sitting. We didn't...we were not thinking about
anything, and all of a sudden, Allah willing, we were talking about how come we didn't
have anything, and all of a sudden the news came and everyone was overjoyed and
everyone until the next day, in the morning, was talking about what was happening and
we stayed until four o'clock, listening to the news every time a little bit different,
everyone was very joyous and saying “Allah is great,” “Allah is great,” “We are thankful
to Allah,” “Praise Allah.” And I was happy for the happiness of my brothers. That day
the congratulations were coming on the phone non-stop. The mother was receiving
phone calls continuously. Thank Allah. Allah is great, praise be to Allah.
(Quoting the verse from the Quran)
Shaykh: “Fight them, Allah will torture them, with your hands, he will torture them. He
will deceive them and he will give you victory. Allah will forgive the believers, he is
knowledgeable about everything.”
Shaykh: No doubt it is a clear victory. Allah has bestowed on us...honor on us...and he
will give us blessing and more victory during this holy month of Ramadan. And this is
what everyone is hoping for. Thank Allah America came out of its caves. We hit her the
first hit and the next one will hit her with the hands of the believers, the good believers,
the strong believers. By Allah it is a great work. Allah prepares for you a great reward
for this work. I'm sorry to speak in your presence, but it is just thoughts, just thoughts.
By Allah, who there is no god but him. I live in happiness, happiness...I have not
experienced, or felt, in a long time. I remember, the words of Al-Rabbani, he said they
made a coalition against us in the winter with the infidels like the Turks, and others, and
some other Arabs. And they surrounded us like the days...in the days of the prophet
Muhammad. Exactly like what's happening right now. But he comforted his followers
and said, "This is going to turn and hit them back." And it is a mercy for us. And a
blessing to us. And it will bring people back. Look how wise he was. And Allah will
give him blessing. And the day will come when the symbols of Islam will rise up and it
will be similar to the early days of Al-Mujahedeen and Al-Ansar (similar to the early
years of Islam). And victory to those who follow Allah. Finally said, if it is the same,
like the old days, such as Abu Bakr and Othman and Ali and others. In these days, in our
times, that it will be the greatest jihad in the history of Islam and the resistance of the
wicked people.
Shaykh: By Allah my Shaykh. We congratulate you for the great work. Thank Allah.
December 13, 2001
Page 5 of 7
Tape ends here
Second segment of Bin Laden’s visit, shows up at the front of the tape
UBL: Abdallah Azzam, Allah bless his soul, told me not to record anything
(...inaudible...) so I thought that was a good omen, and Allah will bless us (...inaudible...).
Abu-Al-Hasan Al-((Masri)), who appeared on Al-Jazeera TV a couple of days ago and
addressed the Americans saying: “If you are true men, come down here and face us.”
(...inaudible...) He told me a year ago: “I saw in a dream, we were playing a soccer game
against the Americans. When our team showed up in the field, they were all pilots!” He
said: “So I wondered if that was a soccer game or a pilot game? Our players were pilots.”
He (Abu-Al-Hasan) didn’t know anything about the operation until he heard it on the
radio. He said the game went on and we defeated them. That was a good omen for us.
Shaykh: May Allah be blessed.
Unidentified Man Off Camera: Abd Al Rahman Al-(Ghamri) said he saw a vision, before
the operation, a plane crashed into a tall building. He knew nothing about it.
Shaykh: May Allah be blessed!
Sulayman ((Abu Guaith)): I was sitting with the Shaykh in a room, then I left to go to
another room where there was a TV set. The TV broadcasted the big event. The scene
was showing an Egyptian family sitting in their living room, they exploded with joy. Do
you know when there is a soccer game and your team wins, it was the same expression of
joy. There was a subtitle that read: “In revenge for the children of Al Aqsa’, Usama Bin
Ladin executes an operation against America.” So I went back to the Shaykh (meaning
UBL) who was sitting in a room with 50 to 60 people. I tried to tell him about what I
saw, but he made gesture with his hands, meaning: “I know, I know...”
UBL: He did not know about the operation. Not everybody knew (...inaudible...).
Muhammad ((Atta)) from the Egyptian family (meaning the Al Qa’ida Egyptian group),
was in charge of the group.
Shaykh: A plane crashing into a tall building was out of anyone's imagination. This was
a great job. He was one of the pious men in the organization. He became a martyr.
Allah bless his soul.
Shaykh (Referring to dreams and visions): The plane that he saw crashing into the
building was seen before by more than one person. One of the good religious people has
left everything and come here. He told me, “I saw a vision, I was in a huge plane, long
and wide. I was carrying it on my shoulders and I walked from the road to the desert for
half a kilometer. I was dragging the plane.” I listened to him and I prayed to Allah to
help him. Another person told me that last year he saw, but I didn't understand and I told
December 13, 2001
Page 6 of 7
him I don't understand. He said, “I saw people who left for jihad...and they found
themselves in New York...in Washington and New York.” I said, “What is this?” He told
me the plane hit the building. That was last year. We haven't thought much about it.
But, when the incidents happened he came to me and said, “Did you see...this is strange.”
I have another man...my god...he said and swore by Allah that his wife had seen the
incident a week earlier. She saw the plane crashing into a building...that was
unbelievable, my god.
UBL: The brothers, who conducted the operation, all they knew was that they have a
martyrdom operation and we asked each of them to go to America but they didn’t know
anything about the operation, not even one letter. But they were trained and we did not
reveal the operation to them until they are there and just before they boarded the planes.
UBL: (...inaudible...) then he said: Those who were trained to fly didn’t know the others.
One group of people did not know the other group. (...inaudible...)
(Someone in the crowd asks UBL to tell the Shaykh about the dream of ((Abu-Da’ud)).
UBL: We were at a camp of one of the brother’s guards in Qandahar. This brother
belonged to the majority of the group. He came close and told me that he saw, in a
dream, a tall building in America, and in the same dream he saw Mukhtar teaching them
how to play karate. At that point, I was worried that maybe the secret would be revealed
if everyone starts seeing it in their dream. So I closed the subject. I told him if he sees
another dream, not to tell anybody, because people will be upset with him.
(Another person’s voice can be heard recounting his dream about two planes hitting a
big building).
UBL: They were overjoyed when the first plane hit the building, so I said to them: be
patient.
UBL: The difference between the first and the second plane hitting the towers was twenty
minutes. And the difference between the first plane and the plane that hit the Pentagon
was one hour.
Shaykh: They (the Americans) were terrified thinking there was a coup.
[Note: Ayman Al-Zawahri says first he commended UBL's awareness of what the media
is saying. Then he says it was the first time for them (Americans) to feel danger coming
at them.]
UBL (reciting a poem):
I witness that against the sharp blade
They always faced difficulties and stood together...
When the darkness comes upon us and we are bit by a
Sharp tooth, I say...
December 13, 2001
“Our homes are flooded with blood and the tyrant
Is freely wandering in our homes”...
And from the battlefield vanished
The brightness of swords and the horses...
And over weeping sounds now
We hear the beats of drums and rhythm...
They are storming his forts
And shouting: “We will not stop our raids
Until you free our lands”...
Bin Laden visit footage complete. Footage of the visit to the helicopter site follows the
poem.
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Dec2001/d20011213ubl.pdf
Authenticity
The authenticity of the tape has been questioned in the Muslim world for the unlikeliness of a taped confession and that bin Laden is seen wearing a gold ring which he has not been seen wearing in any other pictures. The film Loose Change points out another inconsistency, that although the FBI describes bin laden as being left-handed, he is seen in the video writing with his right hand. Some have speculated that this is not so odd; Bin laden is seen writing a note with his right hand in a photo, this photo also contains a journalist. You will also see Bin Laden signing a document with his right hand in the video footage of his arrival in Sudan. The left hand purportedly carries a heavy negative cultural stigma in Arab countries, and using the left hand in public can constitute a serious insult.
Aside from questions of the December 13, 2001 videotape's authenticity, the accuracy of the translation itself was also called into question by the German TV magazine Monitor (Host: Klaus Bednarz/ARD TV) on December 20, 2002 (German transcript[2]), (Summary in English [3]). Monitor presented very specific criticism of two notarized Arab speaking specialists, Abdel El M. Husseini and orient expert Professor Gernot Rotter, who claimed: "The American translators who listened to the tapes and transcribed them apparently wrote a lot of things in that they wanted to hear but that cannot be heard on the tape no matter how many times you listen to it."
The Monitor segment claimed the following parts of the English translation were incorrect:
"... We calculated in advance the number of casualties who would be killed ..." The translation according to Prof. Rotter and Mr. Husseini is however: "... We calculated the number of casualties ..." - That means the words "in advance" didn't appear in the original and have been added in the text translation transcript.
"... We had notification since the previous Thursday that the event would take place that day ..." The translation according to Prof. Rotter and Mr. Husseini is however: "... We had notification since Thursday ..." - "previous" didn't appear on the original tape, nor does the subsequent statement "... that the event would take place that day ...".
"... we asked each of them to go to America ..." The translation according to Prof. Rotter and Mr. Husseini is however in the passive voice, something like: "... they were required ... (rest inaudible).
The English language transcript and annotations linked on CNN's website, however, were independently prepared by George Michael, translator, Diplomatic Language Services; and Dr. Kassem M. Wahba, Arabic language program coordinator, School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University. They collaborated on their translation and compared it with translations done by the U.S. government for consistency; they concluded there were no inconsistencies in the translations."[7]
After the tape was released, United States Secretary of State Colin Powell said, "How could there be a doubt in anyone's mind any longer about what we have said from the very, very beginning, that he was the mastermind, he is the head of an organization that participates in this kind of evil activity?" President George W. Bush said it proved bin Laden "has no conscience and no soul".
Ali Abunimah, vice president of the Arab-American Action Network, said that "[t]he tape should dispel any remaining doubt that bin Laden is an evil villain and responsible for the Sept. 11 attacks. Most serious people didn't need this tape to be convinced. The tapes that had already been released [by bin Laden] made it clear since he all but took responsibility for the attacks." Viewers of Al-Jazeera seemed unconvinced, at least one saying that bin Laden could have just been bragging to impress his host.
[7]
Who was behind 9/11? – an interview with Osama Bin Laden
By The Daily Ummat of Karachi
Daily Ummat: You have been accused of involvement in the attacks on New York and Washington. What do you want to say about this?
Osama Bin Laden: In the name of Allah, the most beneficent, the most merciful. Praise be to Allah, Who is the creator of the whole universe and Who made the Earth as an abode for peace for the whole of humankind. Allah is the Sustainer, who sent the Prophet Muhammad for our guidance. I am thankful to Ummat Publications for giving me the opportunity to convey my viewpoint to the people, particularly the valiant and Momin [true Muslim] people of Pakistan who refused to believe the lies of the demon [Pakistani military dictator General Pervez Musharraf].
I have already said that I am not involved in the September 11 attacks in the United States. As a Muslim, I try my best to avoid telling a lie. I had no knowledge of these attacks, nor do I consider the killing of innocent women, children and other human beings as an appreciable act. Islam strictly forbids causing harm to innocent women, children and other people. Such a practice is forbidden even in the course of battle. It is the United States which is perpetrating every sort of maltreatment on women, children and common people of other faiths, particularly the followers of Islam. All that has been going on in Palestine for the last 11 months is sufficient to invoke the wrath of God upon the United States and Israel. There is also a warning for those Muslim countries that witnessed all of this as silent spectators. What had earlier been done to the innocent people of Iraq, Chechnya and Bosnia? Only one conclusion could be derived from the indifference of the United States and the West to these acts of terror and the patronage of the tyrants by these powers, namely that America is an anti-Islamic power and is patronising anti-Islamic forces. Its friendship with the Muslim countries is just show, or rather deceit. By enticing or intimidating these countries, the United States is forcing them to play a role of its choice. Cast a glance around and you will see that the slaves of the United States are either rulers or enemies of Muslims.
The US has no friends, nor does it want any because the prerequisite of friendship is to come to the level of the friend or consider him on par with yourself. America does not want to see anyone equal to it. It expects slavery from others. Therefore, other countries are either its slaves or its subordinates. However, our case is different. We have pledged slavery to God Almighty alone and after this pledge there is no possibility of becoming someone else's slave. If we did that it would be disregardful both to our Sustainer and to his fellow beings. Most of the nations of the world who are upholding their freedom are the religious ones, which are the enemies of the United States, or which the US itself considers to be its enemies.
The countries which do not agree to become US slaves are China, Iran, Libya, Cuba, Syria [Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Iraq, Sudan, Indonesia, Malaysia] and Russia. Whoever committed the act of September 11 are not the friends of the American people. I have already said that we are against the American system, not against its people, whereas in these attacks, common American people have been killed. According to my information, the death toll is much higher than what the US Government has stated. But the Bush administration does not want the panic to spread. The United States should try to trace the perpetrators of these attacks within itself; the people who are a part of the US system but are dissenting against it. Or those who are working for some other system; persons who want to make the present century as a century of conflict between Islam and Christianity so that their own civilization, nation, country, or ideology can survive. They may be anyone, from Russia to Israel and from India to Serbia. In the US itself, there are dozens of well-organized and well-equipped groups capable of causing large-scale destruction. Then you cannot forget the American Jews, who have been annoyed with President Bush ever since the Florida elections and who want to avenge him.
Then there are intelligence agencies in the US, which require billions of dollars worth of funds from Congress and the government every year. This [funding issue] was not a big problem until the existence of the ex-Soviet Union but after that the budget of these agencies has been in danger. They needed an enemy. So, they first started propaganda against Osama and the Talibans and then this incident happened. You see, the Bush Administration approved a budget of 40 billion dollars. Where will this huge amount go? It will be provided to the same agencies which need huge funds and want to exert their importance. Now they will spend the money for their expansion and to increase their importance. I will give you an example. Drug smugglers from all over the world are in contact with the US secret agencies. These agencies do not want to eradicate narcotics cultivation and trafficking because their importance would be diminished. The people in the US Drug Enforcement Department are encouraging drug trade in order to show performance and get millions of dollars worth of budget. General Noriega was made a drug baron by the CIA and, in need, he was made a scapegoat. In the same way, whether it is President Bush or any other US President, they cannot bring Israel to justice for its human rights abuses or to hold it accountable for such crimes. What is this? Is it not that there exists a government within the government in the United Sates? That secret government must be asked who carried out the attacks.
Daily Ummat: A number of countries have joined the call of the United States to launch attacks on Afghanistan. These also include a number of Muslim countries. Will Al-Qaeda declare a jihad against these Islamic countries too?
Bin Laden: I must say that my duty is just to awaken the Muslims; to tell them what is good for them and what is not, what Islam says and what the enemies of Islam want. Al-Qaeda was set up to wage a jihad against infidelity, particularly to counter the onslaught of the infidel countries against the Islamic states. Jihad is the sixth undeclared pillar of Islam. [The first five being the basic holy words of Islam: that there is only one God in the entire universe and that Muhammad is the last Prophet of God; prayers; fast; pilgrimage to Mecca; and giving alms.] Every anti-Islamic person is afraid of the jihad. Al-Qaeda wants to keep the jihad alive and active and make it a part of the daily life of the Muslims. It wants to give it the status of worship. We are not against any Islamic country. We do not consider a war against an Islamic country to be a jihad. We are in favour of an armed jihad only against those infidel governments that are killing innocent Muslim men, women and children just because they are Muslims. Supporting the US act is the need of some Muslim countries and the compulsion of others. However, they should think about what will remain of their religious and moral position if they support the attack of the Christians and Jews on a Muslim country like Afghanistan. The orders of Islamic Shariah [jurisprudence] for such individuals, organizations and countries are clear and all the scholars of the Muslim brotherhood are unanimous about them. We will do the same, which is being ordered by the Ameer-ul-Momeneen [the commander of the faithful Afghans] Muhammad Omar and the Islamic scholars. The hearts of the people of Muslim countries are beating with the call of jihad. We are grateful to them.
Daily Ummat: The losses caused in the attacks in New York and Washington have proved that giving an economic blow to the US is not too difficult. US experts admit that a few more such attacks could bring down the American economy. Why is Al-Qaeda not targeting their economic pillars?
Bin Laden: I have already said that we are not hostile to the United States. We are against the [US Government] system, which makes other nations slaves of the United States, or forces them to mortgage their political and economic freedom. This system is totally under the control of American-Jews, whose first priority is Israel, not the United States. It is clear that the American people are themselves the slaves of the Jews and are forced to live according to the principles and laws laid down by them. So, the punishment should reach Israel. In fact, it is Israel, which is giving a blood bath to innocent Muslims and the US is not uttering a single word.
Daily Ummat: Why is harm not caused to the enemies of Islam through other means, apart from the armed struggle? For instance, urging the Muslims to boycott Western products, banks, shipping lines and TV channels.
Bin Laden: The first thing is that Western products could only be boycotted when the Muslim fraternity is fully awakened and organized. Secondly, the Muslim companies should become self-sufficient in producing goods equal to the products of Western companies. Economic boycot of the West is not possible unless economic self-sufficiency is attained and substitute products are brought out. You see that wealth is scattered all across the Muslim World but not a single TV channel has been acquired which can preach Islamic injunctions according to modern requirements and attain an international influence. Muslim traders and philanthropists should make it a point that if the weapon of public opinion is to be used, it is to be kept in the hand. Today's world is of public opinion and the fates of nations are determined through its pressure. Once the tools for building public opinion are obtained, everything that you asked for can be done.
Daily Ummat: The entire propaganda about your struggle has so far been made by the Western media. But no information is being received from your sources about the network of Al-Qaeda and its jihad successes. Would you like to comment on this?
Bin Laden: In fact, the Western media is left with nothing else. It has no other theme to survive for a long time. Then we have many other things to do. The struggle for jihad and the successes are for the sake of Allah and not to annoy His bondsmen. Our silence is our real propaganda. Rejections, explanations, or corrigendum only waste your time and through them, the enemy wants you to engage in things which are not of use to you. These things are pulling you away from your cause. The Western media is unleashing such a baseless propaganda, which makes us surprise but it reflects on what is in their hearts and gradually they themselves become captive of this propaganda. They become afraid of it and begin to cause harm to themselves. Terror is the most dreaded weapon in the modern age and the Western media is mercilessly using it against its own people. It can add fear and helplessness in the psyche of the people of Europe and the United States. It means that what the enemies of the United States cannot do, its media is doing for them. You can understand what will be the performance in war of a nation that suffers from fear and helplessness.
Daily Ummat: What will be the impact of the freezing of Al-Qaeda's accounts by the US?
Bin Laden: God opens up ways for those who work for Him. Freezing accounts will not make any difference for Al-Qaeda or other jihad groups. With the grace of Allah, Al-Qaeda has more than three alternative financial systems, which are all separate and totally independent from each other. This system is operating under the patronage of those who love jihad. What can we say about the United States when not even the world combined can budge these people from their path? These people are not hundreds but thousands and millions. Al-Qaeda comprises modern educated youths who are as aware of the cracks inside the Western financial system as they are aware of the lines in the palms of their hands. These are the very flaws of the Western fiscal system, which are becoming a noose for it and this system could not recuperate despite the passage of so many days.
Daily Ummat: Are there any safe areas other than Afghanistan, where you can continue jihad?
Bin Laden: There are areas in all parts of the world where strong jihadi forces are present, from Indonesia to Algeria, from Kabul to Chechnya, from Bosnia to Sudan, and from Burma to Kashmir. Then it is not the problem of my person. I am a helpless fellowman of God, constantly in the fear of my accountability before God. It is not the question of Osama but of Islam and, in Islam too, of jihad. Thanks to God, those waging a jihad can walk today with their heads raised. Jihad existed when there was no Osama and it will continue to exist even when Osama is no longer here. Allah opens up ways and creates love in the hearts of people for those who walk on the path of Allah with their lives, property and children. Believe it, through jihad, a man gets everything he desires. And the biggest desire of a Muslim is the life after death. Martyrdom is the shortest way of attaining an eternal life.
Daily Ummat: What do you have to say about the Pakistani Government policy regarding the attack on Afghanistan?
Bin Laden: We are thankful to the Momin and valiant people of Pakistan who erected a blockade before the evil forces and stood in the first line of battle. Pakistan is a great hope for the Islamic brotherhood. Its people are awakened, organized and rich in the spirit of faith. They backed Afghanistan in its war against the Soviet Union and extended all its help to the Mojahedin and Afghan people. Then these are the very Pakistanis who are standing shoulder to shoulder with the Taliban. If such people emerged in just two countries, the domination of the West would diminish in a matter of days. Our hearts beat with Pakistan and, God forbid, if a difficult time comes we will protect it with our blood. Pakistan is as sacred for us as a place of worship. We are the people of jihad and fighting for the defense of Pakistan is the best of all jihads to us. It does not matter for us as to who reforms Pakistan. The important thing is that the spirit of jihad is alive and stronger in the hearts of the Pakistani people.
Note: This interview was published by JUST Response on November 26 2003. It first appeared on September 28 2001 in the Karachi-based The Daily Ummat, Pakistan's second largest Urdu morning newspaper, to whom we express our grateful acknowledgement. Explanations and additions in square brackets were added by the translator.
http://www.justresponse.net/Bin_Laden1.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Videos_of_Osama_bin_Laden#_note-6
On December 13, 2001, the United States State Department released a video tape apparently showing Osama bin Laden speaking with Khaled al-Harbi and other associates, somewhere in Afghanistan, before the U.S. invasion had driven the Taliban regime from Kandahar. The State Department claimed that the tape is authentic and was captured by U.S. forces in Afghanistan during a raid on a house in Jalalabad.[5] The tape appears to implicate bin Laden in the September 11, 2001 attacks and was aired on many television channels all over the world, with an accompanying English translation provided by the United States Defense Department. In this translation, Osama bin Laden displays knowledge of the timing of the actual attack a few days in advance; the translation attributes the following lines to bin Laden:
"we calculated in advance the number of casualties from the enemy, who would be killed based on the position of the tower. We calculated that the floors that would be hit would be three or four floors. I was the most optimistic of them all...We had notification since the previous Thursday that the event would take place that day. We had finished our work that day and had the radio on...Muhammad (Atta) from the Egyptian family (meaning the Al Qaida Egyptian group), was in charge of the group...The brothers, who conducted the operation, all they knew was that they have a martyrdom operation and we asked each of them to go to America but they didn't know anything about the operation, not even one letter. But they were trained and we did not reveal the operation to them until they are there and just before they boarded the planes."[6]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Videos_of_Osama_bin_Laden#_note-1
Official English translation as provided by the Defense Department:
Page 1 of 7
TRANSCRIPT OF USAMA BIN LADEN VIDEO TAPE
(Transcript and annotations independently prepared by George Michael,
translator, Diplomatic Language Services; and Dr. Kassem M. Wahba, Arabic language
program coordinator, School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins
University. They collaborated on their translation and compared it with translations done
by the U.S. government for consistency. There were no inconsistencies in the
translations.)
In mid-November, Usama Bin Laden spoke to a room of supporters, possibly in
Qandahar, Afghanistan. These comments were video taped with the knowledge of Bin
Laden and all present.
Note: The tape is approximately one hour long and contains three different
segments: an original taping of a visit by some people to the site of the downed U.S.
helicopter in Ghazni province (approximately 12 minutes long); and two segments
documenting a courtesy visit by Bin Laden and his lieutenants to an unidentified Shaykh,
who appears crippled from the waist down. The visit apparently takes place at a
guesthouse in Qandahar. The sequence of the events is reversed on the tape—the end of
his visit is in the beginning of the tape with the helicopter site visit in the middle and the
start of the Usama bin Laden visit beginning approximately 39 minutes into the tape. The
tape is transcribed below according to the proper sequence of events.
Due to the quality of the original tape, it is NOT a verbatim transcript of every
word spoken during the meeting, but does convey the messages and information flow.
EDITOR’S NOTE: 39 minutes into tape, first segment of the bin Laden meeting, begins
after footage of helicopter site visit
Shaykh: (...inaudible...) You have given us weapons, you have given us hope and we
thank Allah for you. We don’t want to take much of your time, but this is the
arrangement of the brothers. People now are supporting us more, even those ones who
did not support us in the past, support us more now. I did not want to take that much of
your time. We praise Allah, we praise Allah. We came from Kabul. We were very
pleased to visit. May Allah bless you both at home and the camp. We asked the driver to
take us, it was a night with a full moon, thanks be to Allah. Believe me it is not in the
country side. The elderly...everybody praises what you did, the great action you did,
which was first and foremost by the grace of Allah. This is the guidance of Allah and the
blessed fruit of jihad.
UBL: Thanks to Allah. What is the stand of the Mosques there (in Saudi Arabia)?
Shaykh: Honestly, they are very positive. Shaykh Al-Bahrani (phonetic) gave a good
sermon in his class after the sunset prayers. It was videotaped and I was supposed to
carry it with me, but unfortunately, I had to leave immediately.
UBL: The day of the events?
December 13, 2001
Page 2 of 7
Shaykh: At the exact time of the attack on America, precisely at the time. He (Bahrani)
gave a very impressive sermon. Thanks be to Allah for his blessings. He (Bahrani) was
the first one to write at war time. I visited him twice in Al-Qasim.
UBL: Thanks be to Allah.
Shaykh: This is what I asked from Allah. He (Bahrani) told the youth: “You are asking
for martyrdom and wonder where you should go (for martyrdom)?” Allah was inciting
them to go. I asked Allah to grant me to witness the truth in front of the unjust ruler. We
ask Allah to protect him and give him the martyrdom, after he issued the first fatwa. He
was detained for interrogation, as you know. When he was called in and asked to sign, he
told them, "don’t waste my time, I have another fatwa. If you want me, I can sign both at
the same time."
UBL: Thanks be to Allah.
Shaykh: His position is really very encouraging. When I paid him the first visit about a
year and half ago, he asked me, “How is Shaykh Bin-Ladin?” He sends you his special
regards. As far as Shaykh Sulayman ‘Ulwan is concerned, he gave a beautiful fatwa,
may Allah bless him. Miraculously, I heard it on the Quran radio station. It was strange
because he (‘Ulwan) sacrificed his position, which is equivalent to a director. It was
transcribed word-by-word. The brothers listened to it in detail. I briefly heard it before
the noon prayers. He (‘Ulwan) said this was jihad and those people were not innocent
people (World Trade Center and Pentagon victims). He swore to Allah. This was
transmitted to Shaykh Sulayman Al ((‘Umar)) Allah bless him.
UBL: What about Shaykh Al-((Rayan))?
Shaykh: Honestly, I did not meet with him. My movements were truly limited.
UBL: Allah bless you. You are welcome.
Shaykh: (Describing the trip to the meeting) They smuggled us and then I thought that
we would be in different caves inside the mountains so I was surprised at the guest house
and that it is very clean and comfortable. Thanks be to Allah, we also learned that this
location is safe, by Allah’s blessings. The place is clean and we are very comfortable.
UBL: (...Inaudible...) when people see a strong horse and a weak horse, by nature, they
will like the strong horse. This is only one goal; those who want people to worship the
lord of the people, without following that doctrine, will be following the doctrine of
Muhammad, peace be upon him.
(UBL quotes several short and incomplete Hadith verses, as follows):
“I was ordered to fight the people until they say there is no god but Allah, and his prophet
December 13, 2001
Page 3 of 7
Muhammad.”
“Some people may ask: why do you want to fight us?”
“There is an association between those who say: I believe in one god and Muhammad is
his prophet, and those who don’t (...inaudible...)
“Those who do not follow the true fiqh. The fiqh of Muhammad, the real fiqh. They are
just accepting what is being said at face value.”
UBL: Those youth who conducted the operations did not accept any fiqh in the popular
terms, but they accepted the fiqh that the prophet Muhammad brought. Those young men
(...inaudible...) said in deeds, in New York and Washington, speeches that overshadowed
all other speeches made everywhere else in the world. The speeches are understood by
both Arabs and non-Arabs–even by Chinese. It is above all the media said. Some of
them said that in Holland, at one of the centers, the number of people who accepted Islam
during the days that followed the operations were more than the people who accepted
Islam in the last eleven years. I heard someone on Islamic radio who owns a school in
America say: “We don’t have time to keep up with the demands of those who are asking
about Islamic books to learn about Islam.” This event made people think (about true
Islam) which benefited Islam greatly.
Shaykh: Hundreds of people used to doubt you and few only would follow you until this
huge event happened. Now hundreds of people are coming out to join you. I remember a
vision by Shaykh Salih Al-((Shuaybi)). He said: “There will be a great hit and people
will go out by hundreds to Afghanistan.” I asked him (Salih): “To Afghanistan?” He
replied, “Yes.” According to him, the only ones who stay behind will be the mentally
impotent and the liars (hypocrites). I remembered his saying that hundreds of people will
go out to Afghanistan. He had this vision a year ago. This event discriminated between
the different types of followers.
UBL: (...Inaudible...) we calculated in advance the number of casualties from the enemy,
who would be killed based on the position of the tower. We calculated that the floors that
would be hit would be three or four floors. I was the most optimistic of them all.
(...Inaudible...) due to my experience in this field, I was thinking that the fire from the gas
in the plane would melt the iron structure of the building and collapse the area where the
plane hit and all the floors above it only. This is all that we had hoped for.
Shaykh: Allah be praised.
UBL: We were at (...inaudible...) when the event took place. We had notification since
the previous Thursday that the event would take place that day. We had finished our
work that day and had the radio on. It was 5:30 p.m. our time. I was sitting with Dr.
Ahmad Abu-al-((Khair)). Immediately, we heard the news that a plane had hit the World
Trade Center. We turned the radio station to the news from Washington. The news
continued and no mention of the attack until the end. At the end of the newscast, they
December 13, 2001
Page 4 of 7
reported that a plane just hit the World Trade Center.
Shaykh: Allah be praised.
UBL: After a little while, they announced that another plane had hit the World Trade
Center. The brothers who heard the news were overjoyed by it.
Shaykh: I listened to the news and I was sitting. We didn't...we were not thinking about
anything, and all of a sudden, Allah willing, we were talking about how come we didn't
have anything, and all of a sudden the news came and everyone was overjoyed and
everyone until the next day, in the morning, was talking about what was happening and
we stayed until four o'clock, listening to the news every time a little bit different,
everyone was very joyous and saying “Allah is great,” “Allah is great,” “We are thankful
to Allah,” “Praise Allah.” And I was happy for the happiness of my brothers. That day
the congratulations were coming on the phone non-stop. The mother was receiving
phone calls continuously. Thank Allah. Allah is great, praise be to Allah.
(Quoting the verse from the Quran)
Shaykh: “Fight them, Allah will torture them, with your hands, he will torture them. He
will deceive them and he will give you victory. Allah will forgive the believers, he is
knowledgeable about everything.”
Shaykh: No doubt it is a clear victory. Allah has bestowed on us...honor on us...and he
will give us blessing and more victory during this holy month of Ramadan. And this is
what everyone is hoping for. Thank Allah America came out of its caves. We hit her the
first hit and the next one will hit her with the hands of the believers, the good believers,
the strong believers. By Allah it is a great work. Allah prepares for you a great reward
for this work. I'm sorry to speak in your presence, but it is just thoughts, just thoughts.
By Allah, who there is no god but him. I live in happiness, happiness...I have not
experienced, or felt, in a long time. I remember, the words of Al-Rabbani, he said they
made a coalition against us in the winter with the infidels like the Turks, and others, and
some other Arabs. And they surrounded us like the days...in the days of the prophet
Muhammad. Exactly like what's happening right now. But he comforted his followers
and said, "This is going to turn and hit them back." And it is a mercy for us. And a
blessing to us. And it will bring people back. Look how wise he was. And Allah will
give him blessing. And the day will come when the symbols of Islam will rise up and it
will be similar to the early days of Al-Mujahedeen and Al-Ansar (similar to the early
years of Islam). And victory to those who follow Allah. Finally said, if it is the same,
like the old days, such as Abu Bakr and Othman and Ali and others. In these days, in our
times, that it will be the greatest jihad in the history of Islam and the resistance of the
wicked people.
Shaykh: By Allah my Shaykh. We congratulate you for the great work. Thank Allah.
December 13, 2001
Page 5 of 7
Tape ends here
Second segment of Bin Laden’s visit, shows up at the front of the tape
UBL: Abdallah Azzam, Allah bless his soul, told me not to record anything
(...inaudible...) so I thought that was a good omen, and Allah will bless us (...inaudible...).
Abu-Al-Hasan Al-((Masri)), who appeared on Al-Jazeera TV a couple of days ago and
addressed the Americans saying: “If you are true men, come down here and face us.”
(...inaudible...) He told me a year ago: “I saw in a dream, we were playing a soccer game
against the Americans. When our team showed up in the field, they were all pilots!” He
said: “So I wondered if that was a soccer game or a pilot game? Our players were pilots.”
He (Abu-Al-Hasan) didn’t know anything about the operation until he heard it on the
radio. He said the game went on and we defeated them. That was a good omen for us.
Shaykh: May Allah be blessed.
Unidentified Man Off Camera: Abd Al Rahman Al-(Ghamri) said he saw a vision, before
the operation, a plane crashed into a tall building. He knew nothing about it.
Shaykh: May Allah be blessed!
Sulayman ((Abu Guaith)): I was sitting with the Shaykh in a room, then I left to go to
another room where there was a TV set. The TV broadcasted the big event. The scene
was showing an Egyptian family sitting in their living room, they exploded with joy. Do
you know when there is a soccer game and your team wins, it was the same expression of
joy. There was a subtitle that read: “In revenge for the children of Al Aqsa’, Usama Bin
Ladin executes an operation against America.” So I went back to the Shaykh (meaning
UBL) who was sitting in a room with 50 to 60 people. I tried to tell him about what I
saw, but he made gesture with his hands, meaning: “I know, I know...”
UBL: He did not know about the operation. Not everybody knew (...inaudible...).
Muhammad ((Atta)) from the Egyptian family (meaning the Al Qa’ida Egyptian group),
was in charge of the group.
Shaykh: A plane crashing into a tall building was out of anyone's imagination. This was
a great job. He was one of the pious men in the organization. He became a martyr.
Allah bless his soul.
Shaykh (Referring to dreams and visions): The plane that he saw crashing into the
building was seen before by more than one person. One of the good religious people has
left everything and come here. He told me, “I saw a vision, I was in a huge plane, long
and wide. I was carrying it on my shoulders and I walked from the road to the desert for
half a kilometer. I was dragging the plane.” I listened to him and I prayed to Allah to
help him. Another person told me that last year he saw, but I didn't understand and I told
December 13, 2001
Page 6 of 7
him I don't understand. He said, “I saw people who left for jihad...and they found
themselves in New York...in Washington and New York.” I said, “What is this?” He told
me the plane hit the building. That was last year. We haven't thought much about it.
But, when the incidents happened he came to me and said, “Did you see...this is strange.”
I have another man...my god...he said and swore by Allah that his wife had seen the
incident a week earlier. She saw the plane crashing into a building...that was
unbelievable, my god.
UBL: The brothers, who conducted the operation, all they knew was that they have a
martyrdom operation and we asked each of them to go to America but they didn’t know
anything about the operation, not even one letter. But they were trained and we did not
reveal the operation to them until they are there and just before they boarded the planes.
UBL: (...inaudible...) then he said: Those who were trained to fly didn’t know the others.
One group of people did not know the other group. (...inaudible...)
(Someone in the crowd asks UBL to tell the Shaykh about the dream of ((Abu-Da’ud)).
UBL: We were at a camp of one of the brother’s guards in Qandahar. This brother
belonged to the majority of the group. He came close and told me that he saw, in a
dream, a tall building in America, and in the same dream he saw Mukhtar teaching them
how to play karate. At that point, I was worried that maybe the secret would be revealed
if everyone starts seeing it in their dream. So I closed the subject. I told him if he sees
another dream, not to tell anybody, because people will be upset with him.
(Another person’s voice can be heard recounting his dream about two planes hitting a
big building).
UBL: They were overjoyed when the first plane hit the building, so I said to them: be
patient.
UBL: The difference between the first and the second plane hitting the towers was twenty
minutes. And the difference between the first plane and the plane that hit the Pentagon
was one hour.
Shaykh: They (the Americans) were terrified thinking there was a coup.
[Note: Ayman Al-Zawahri says first he commended UBL's awareness of what the media
is saying. Then he says it was the first time for them (Americans) to feel danger coming
at them.]
UBL (reciting a poem):
I witness that against the sharp blade
They always faced difficulties and stood together...
When the darkness comes upon us and we are bit by a
Sharp tooth, I say...
December 13, 2001
“Our homes are flooded with blood and the tyrant
Is freely wandering in our homes”...
And from the battlefield vanished
The brightness of swords and the horses...
And over weeping sounds now
We hear the beats of drums and rhythm...
They are storming his forts
And shouting: “We will not stop our raids
Until you free our lands”...
Bin Laden visit footage complete. Footage of the visit to the helicopter site follows the
poem.
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Dec2001/d20011213ubl.pdf
Authenticity
The authenticity of the tape has been questioned in the Muslim world for the unlikeliness of a taped confession and that bin Laden is seen wearing a gold ring which he has not been seen wearing in any other pictures. The film Loose Change points out another inconsistency, that although the FBI describes bin laden as being left-handed, he is seen in the video writing with his right hand. Some have speculated that this is not so odd; Bin laden is seen writing a note with his right hand in a photo, this photo also contains a journalist. You will also see Bin Laden signing a document with his right hand in the video footage of his arrival in Sudan. The left hand purportedly carries a heavy negative cultural stigma in Arab countries, and using the left hand in public can constitute a serious insult.
Aside from questions of the December 13, 2001 videotape's authenticity, the accuracy of the translation itself was also called into question by the German TV magazine Monitor (Host: Klaus Bednarz/ARD TV) on December 20, 2002 (German transcript[2]), (Summary in English [3]). Monitor presented very specific criticism of two notarized Arab speaking specialists, Abdel El M. Husseini and orient expert Professor Gernot Rotter, who claimed: "The American translators who listened to the tapes and transcribed them apparently wrote a lot of things in that they wanted to hear but that cannot be heard on the tape no matter how many times you listen to it."
The Monitor segment claimed the following parts of the English translation were incorrect:
"... We calculated in advance the number of casualties who would be killed ..." The translation according to Prof. Rotter and Mr. Husseini is however: "... We calculated the number of casualties ..." - That means the words "in advance" didn't appear in the original and have been added in the text translation transcript.
"... We had notification since the previous Thursday that the event would take place that day ..." The translation according to Prof. Rotter and Mr. Husseini is however: "... We had notification since Thursday ..." - "previous" didn't appear on the original tape, nor does the subsequent statement "... that the event would take place that day ...".
"... we asked each of them to go to America ..." The translation according to Prof. Rotter and Mr. Husseini is however in the passive voice, something like: "... they were required ... (rest inaudible).
The English language transcript and annotations linked on CNN's website, however, were independently prepared by George Michael, translator, Diplomatic Language Services; and Dr. Kassem M. Wahba, Arabic language program coordinator, School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University. They collaborated on their translation and compared it with translations done by the U.S. government for consistency; they concluded there were no inconsistencies in the translations."[7]
After the tape was released, United States Secretary of State Colin Powell said, "How could there be a doubt in anyone's mind any longer about what we have said from the very, very beginning, that he was the mastermind, he is the head of an organization that participates in this kind of evil activity?" President George W. Bush said it proved bin Laden "has no conscience and no soul".
Ali Abunimah, vice president of the Arab-American Action Network, said that "[t]he tape should dispel any remaining doubt that bin Laden is an evil villain and responsible for the Sept. 11 attacks. Most serious people didn't need this tape to be convinced. The tapes that had already been released [by bin Laden] made it clear since he all but took responsibility for the attacks." Viewers of Al-Jazeera seemed unconvinced, at least one saying that bin Laden could have just been bragging to impress his host.
[7]
Who was behind 9/11? – an interview with Osama Bin Laden
By The Daily Ummat of Karachi
Daily Ummat: You have been accused of involvement in the attacks on New York and Washington. What do you want to say about this?
Osama Bin Laden: In the name of Allah, the most beneficent, the most merciful. Praise be to Allah, Who is the creator of the whole universe and Who made the Earth as an abode for peace for the whole of humankind. Allah is the Sustainer, who sent the Prophet Muhammad for our guidance. I am thankful to Ummat Publications for giving me the opportunity to convey my viewpoint to the people, particularly the valiant and Momin [true Muslim] people of Pakistan who refused to believe the lies of the demon [Pakistani military dictator General Pervez Musharraf].
I have already said that I am not involved in the September 11 attacks in the United States. As a Muslim, I try my best to avoid telling a lie. I had no knowledge of these attacks, nor do I consider the killing of innocent women, children and other human beings as an appreciable act. Islam strictly forbids causing harm to innocent women, children and other people. Such a practice is forbidden even in the course of battle. It is the United States which is perpetrating every sort of maltreatment on women, children and common people of other faiths, particularly the followers of Islam. All that has been going on in Palestine for the last 11 months is sufficient to invoke the wrath of God upon the United States and Israel. There is also a warning for those Muslim countries that witnessed all of this as silent spectators. What had earlier been done to the innocent people of Iraq, Chechnya and Bosnia? Only one conclusion could be derived from the indifference of the United States and the West to these acts of terror and the patronage of the tyrants by these powers, namely that America is an anti-Islamic power and is patronising anti-Islamic forces. Its friendship with the Muslim countries is just show, or rather deceit. By enticing or intimidating these countries, the United States is forcing them to play a role of its choice. Cast a glance around and you will see that the slaves of the United States are either rulers or enemies of Muslims.
The US has no friends, nor does it want any because the prerequisite of friendship is to come to the level of the friend or consider him on par with yourself. America does not want to see anyone equal to it. It expects slavery from others. Therefore, other countries are either its slaves or its subordinates. However, our case is different. We have pledged slavery to God Almighty alone and after this pledge there is no possibility of becoming someone else's slave. If we did that it would be disregardful both to our Sustainer and to his fellow beings. Most of the nations of the world who are upholding their freedom are the religious ones, which are the enemies of the United States, or which the US itself considers to be its enemies.
The countries which do not agree to become US slaves are China, Iran, Libya, Cuba, Syria [Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Iraq, Sudan, Indonesia, Malaysia] and Russia. Whoever committed the act of September 11 are not the friends of the American people. I have already said that we are against the American system, not against its people, whereas in these attacks, common American people have been killed. According to my information, the death toll is much higher than what the US Government has stated. But the Bush administration does not want the panic to spread. The United States should try to trace the perpetrators of these attacks within itself; the people who are a part of the US system but are dissenting against it. Or those who are working for some other system; persons who want to make the present century as a century of conflict between Islam and Christianity so that their own civilization, nation, country, or ideology can survive. They may be anyone, from Russia to Israel and from India to Serbia. In the US itself, there are dozens of well-organized and well-equipped groups capable of causing large-scale destruction. Then you cannot forget the American Jews, who have been annoyed with President Bush ever since the Florida elections and who want to avenge him.
Then there are intelligence agencies in the US, which require billions of dollars worth of funds from Congress and the government every year. This [funding issue] was not a big problem until the existence of the ex-Soviet Union but after that the budget of these agencies has been in danger. They needed an enemy. So, they first started propaganda against Osama and the Talibans and then this incident happened. You see, the Bush Administration approved a budget of 40 billion dollars. Where will this huge amount go? It will be provided to the same agencies which need huge funds and want to exert their importance. Now they will spend the money for their expansion and to increase their importance. I will give you an example. Drug smugglers from all over the world are in contact with the US secret agencies. These agencies do not want to eradicate narcotics cultivation and trafficking because their importance would be diminished. The people in the US Drug Enforcement Department are encouraging drug trade in order to show performance and get millions of dollars worth of budget. General Noriega was made a drug baron by the CIA and, in need, he was made a scapegoat. In the same way, whether it is President Bush or any other US President, they cannot bring Israel to justice for its human rights abuses or to hold it accountable for such crimes. What is this? Is it not that there exists a government within the government in the United Sates? That secret government must be asked who carried out the attacks.
Daily Ummat: A number of countries have joined the call of the United States to launch attacks on Afghanistan. These also include a number of Muslim countries. Will Al-Qaeda declare a jihad against these Islamic countries too?
Bin Laden: I must say that my duty is just to awaken the Muslims; to tell them what is good for them and what is not, what Islam says and what the enemies of Islam want. Al-Qaeda was set up to wage a jihad against infidelity, particularly to counter the onslaught of the infidel countries against the Islamic states. Jihad is the sixth undeclared pillar of Islam. [The first five being the basic holy words of Islam: that there is only one God in the entire universe and that Muhammad is the last Prophet of God; prayers; fast; pilgrimage to Mecca; and giving alms.] Every anti-Islamic person is afraid of the jihad. Al-Qaeda wants to keep the jihad alive and active and make it a part of the daily life of the Muslims. It wants to give it the status of worship. We are not against any Islamic country. We do not consider a war against an Islamic country to be a jihad. We are in favour of an armed jihad only against those infidel governments that are killing innocent Muslim men, women and children just because they are Muslims. Supporting the US act is the need of some Muslim countries and the compulsion of others. However, they should think about what will remain of their religious and moral position if they support the attack of the Christians and Jews on a Muslim country like Afghanistan. The orders of Islamic Shariah [jurisprudence] for such individuals, organizations and countries are clear and all the scholars of the Muslim brotherhood are unanimous about them. We will do the same, which is being ordered by the Ameer-ul-Momeneen [the commander of the faithful Afghans] Muhammad Omar and the Islamic scholars. The hearts of the people of Muslim countries are beating with the call of jihad. We are grateful to them.
Daily Ummat: The losses caused in the attacks in New York and Washington have proved that giving an economic blow to the US is not too difficult. US experts admit that a few more such attacks could bring down the American economy. Why is Al-Qaeda not targeting their economic pillars?
Bin Laden: I have already said that we are not hostile to the United States. We are against the [US Government] system, which makes other nations slaves of the United States, or forces them to mortgage their political and economic freedom. This system is totally under the control of American-Jews, whose first priority is Israel, not the United States. It is clear that the American people are themselves the slaves of the Jews and are forced to live according to the principles and laws laid down by them. So, the punishment should reach Israel. In fact, it is Israel, which is giving a blood bath to innocent Muslims and the US is not uttering a single word.
Daily Ummat: Why is harm not caused to the enemies of Islam through other means, apart from the armed struggle? For instance, urging the Muslims to boycott Western products, banks, shipping lines and TV channels.
Bin Laden: The first thing is that Western products could only be boycotted when the Muslim fraternity is fully awakened and organized. Secondly, the Muslim companies should become self-sufficient in producing goods equal to the products of Western companies. Economic boycot of the West is not possible unless economic self-sufficiency is attained and substitute products are brought out. You see that wealth is scattered all across the Muslim World but not a single TV channel has been acquired which can preach Islamic injunctions according to modern requirements and attain an international influence. Muslim traders and philanthropists should make it a point that if the weapon of public opinion is to be used, it is to be kept in the hand. Today's world is of public opinion and the fates of nations are determined through its pressure. Once the tools for building public opinion are obtained, everything that you asked for can be done.
Daily Ummat: The entire propaganda about your struggle has so far been made by the Western media. But no information is being received from your sources about the network of Al-Qaeda and its jihad successes. Would you like to comment on this?
Bin Laden: In fact, the Western media is left with nothing else. It has no other theme to survive for a long time. Then we have many other things to do. The struggle for jihad and the successes are for the sake of Allah and not to annoy His bondsmen. Our silence is our real propaganda. Rejections, explanations, or corrigendum only waste your time and through them, the enemy wants you to engage in things which are not of use to you. These things are pulling you away from your cause. The Western media is unleashing such a baseless propaganda, which makes us surprise but it reflects on what is in their hearts and gradually they themselves become captive of this propaganda. They become afraid of it and begin to cause harm to themselves. Terror is the most dreaded weapon in the modern age and the Western media is mercilessly using it against its own people. It can add fear and helplessness in the psyche of the people of Europe and the United States. It means that what the enemies of the United States cannot do, its media is doing for them. You can understand what will be the performance in war of a nation that suffers from fear and helplessness.
Daily Ummat: What will be the impact of the freezing of Al-Qaeda's accounts by the US?
Bin Laden: God opens up ways for those who work for Him. Freezing accounts will not make any difference for Al-Qaeda or other jihad groups. With the grace of Allah, Al-Qaeda has more than three alternative financial systems, which are all separate and totally independent from each other. This system is operating under the patronage of those who love jihad. What can we say about the United States when not even the world combined can budge these people from their path? These people are not hundreds but thousands and millions. Al-Qaeda comprises modern educated youths who are as aware of the cracks inside the Western financial system as they are aware of the lines in the palms of their hands. These are the very flaws of the Western fiscal system, which are becoming a noose for it and this system could not recuperate despite the passage of so many days.
Daily Ummat: Are there any safe areas other than Afghanistan, where you can continue jihad?
Bin Laden: There are areas in all parts of the world where strong jihadi forces are present, from Indonesia to Algeria, from Kabul to Chechnya, from Bosnia to Sudan, and from Burma to Kashmir. Then it is not the problem of my person. I am a helpless fellowman of God, constantly in the fear of my accountability before God. It is not the question of Osama but of Islam and, in Islam too, of jihad. Thanks to God, those waging a jihad can walk today with their heads raised. Jihad existed when there was no Osama and it will continue to exist even when Osama is no longer here. Allah opens up ways and creates love in the hearts of people for those who walk on the path of Allah with their lives, property and children. Believe it, through jihad, a man gets everything he desires. And the biggest desire of a Muslim is the life after death. Martyrdom is the shortest way of attaining an eternal life.
Daily Ummat: What do you have to say about the Pakistani Government policy regarding the attack on Afghanistan?
Bin Laden: We are thankful to the Momin and valiant people of Pakistan who erected a blockade before the evil forces and stood in the first line of battle. Pakistan is a great hope for the Islamic brotherhood. Its people are awakened, organized and rich in the spirit of faith. They backed Afghanistan in its war against the Soviet Union and extended all its help to the Mojahedin and Afghan people. Then these are the very Pakistanis who are standing shoulder to shoulder with the Taliban. If such people emerged in just two countries, the domination of the West would diminish in a matter of days. Our hearts beat with Pakistan and, God forbid, if a difficult time comes we will protect it with our blood. Pakistan is as sacred for us as a place of worship. We are the people of jihad and fighting for the defense of Pakistan is the best of all jihads to us. It does not matter for us as to who reforms Pakistan. The important thing is that the spirit of jihad is alive and stronger in the hearts of the Pakistani people.
Note: This interview was published by JUST Response on November 26 2003. It first appeared on September 28 2001 in the Karachi-based The Daily Ummat, Pakistan's second largest Urdu morning newspaper, to whom we express our grateful acknowledgement. Explanations and additions in square brackets were added by the translator.
http://www.justresponse.net/Bin_Laden1.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Videos_of_Osama_bin_Laden#_note-6
From Wikipedia:
Bin Laden has been interviewed by western journalists and has for several years repeatedly broadcast a list of grievances, which he cites as the reason for his declaration of war against the U.S. Most of these statements have been confirmed as bin Laden's. At least one letter written in Arabic, ostensibly bin Laden's "will", appeared on the Internet but has not been authenticated.
In 1998, Osama Bin Laden had issued a fatwa [2]
We--with God's help--call on every Muslim who believes in God and wishes to be rewarded to comply with God's order to kill the Americans and plunder their money wherever and whenever they find it. We also call on Muslim ulema, leaders, youths, and soldiers to launch the raid on Satan's U.S. troops and the devil's supporters allying with them, and to displace those who are behind them so that they may learn a lesson. The ruling to kill the Americans and their allies -- civilians and military -- is an individual duty for every Muslim who can do it in any country in which it is possible to do it, in order to liberate the al-Aqsa Mosque and the holy mosque [Mecca] from their grip, and in order for their armies to move out of all the lands of Islam, defeated and unable to threaten any Muslim.[3]
In an interview with journalist Rahimullah Yusufzai published in TIME Magazine, January 11, 1999, Osama Bin Laden is quoted as saying:
“ "The International Islamic Front for Jihad against the U.S. and Israel has issued a crystal-clear fatwa calling on the Islamic nation to carry on jihad aimed at liberating holy sites. The nation of Muhammad has responded to this appeal. If the instigation for jihad against the Jews and the Americans in order to liberate Al-Aksa Mosque and the Holy Ka'aba Islamic shrines in the Middle East is considered a crime, then let history be a witness that I am a criminal." [4]
Pubished in the Arabic Newspaper al-Quds al-Arabi (London, U.K.) on 23 February, 1998, p. 3.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Videos_of_Osama_bin_Laden#_note-1
http://www.library.cornell.edu/colldev/mideast/fatw2.htm
New purported bin Laden tape raises fear of new attacks
New purported bin Laden tape raises fear of new attacks
Audiotape: 'The real battle has not started yet'
(CNN) --On the eve of the second anniversary of the September 11 attacks, a taped statement purportedly from two al Qaeda leaders is raising concerns of new terror attacks against U.S. interests.
The Arabic-language news network Al-Jazeera broadcast Wednesday what it said was a new tape of Osama bin Laden and his top deputy, Ayman al-Zawahiri encouraging new attacks against Americans.
The voice claiming to be bin Laden praises the suicide hijackers who crashed jetliners into the World Trade Center, Pentagon and a Pennsylvania field two years ago, killing more than 3,000 people. He mentions several of the hijackers by name.
"Those who don't agree with killing, then let them step out of the way," he says. "I would say to them, those who are afraid of climbing mountains will live in pits and holes."
Intelligence officials note that previous bin Laden/al Qaeda tapes have been followed by attacks on Western interests.
U.S. officials said the "chatter" level among suspected terrorists is up, but that there is no specific or credible intelligence about a particular target.
In the latest preproduced tape with separate video and audio portions, a voice purported to be that of al-Zawahiri, warned that the battle with the United States was far from over and exhorted fighters in Iraq to "bury them [the Americans] in the graveyard of Iraq."
The voice also said the United States has so far experienced "just the first skirmishes" and not yet begun to realize the true volume of its casualties.
"Those fighters in Iraq, we greet them and salute them and support them and ask God to bless their efforts and their bravery in fighting the crusaders, and we tell them God is with you and the nation is supporting you, depend and rely on God and attack and devour the Americans and bury them in the graveyard of Iraq," the purported voice of Ayman al-Zawahiri said.
Rumsfeld: Tape is tool to solicit money
The taped voice warned that "the real battle has not started yet. Prepare yourself for the punishment for your crimes."
That theme of the fighting just beginning also was used last month in an audiotape the CIA said was likely the voice of al-Zawahiri.
"We recommend to the mothers of the soldiers, if you like to see your sons, then hasten to ask your government to return them rather than coming back to you in coffins," the voice said on the latest tape.
Al-Zawahiri is bin Laden's closest adviser as well as his doctor.
The video portion of the tape on Al-Jazeera showed bin Laden and al-Zawahiri walking down a rocky hillside path. It's not known when or where the videotape was shot, but Al-Jazeera speculated it could have been in April or May. It's also unclear when the audio was recorded.
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said the tape is just an attempt by the terrorist organization to prove to its followers that it's doing well.
"What they're doing is they're trying to pretend that they're functioning well, leave the impression that people should give them money, their financiers, leave the impression that they're a viable organization and that they should get recruits, and just generally give encouragement to their people," Rumsfeld said on PBS' NewsHour with Jim Lehrer.
U.S. intelligence officials are analyzing the video and audio portions of the new tape and officials say that within a day or so, they will be able to determine whether the voices are indeed the two al Qaeda leaders.
Bin Laden was last seen in a videotape released in late 2001. It is believed that he is hiding along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. Alleged September 11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed said he met with bin Laden in December 2002, according to Pakistani intelligence officials who captured Mohammed a few months ago.
The last statement from bin Laden came April 7 of this year, and al-Zawahiri released a statement August 3.
Some U.S. officials doubt that the latest tape was shot earlier this year, saying that both men appear to be in good health and bin Laden shows no signs of the injuries that intelligence sources said he suffered in the siege of Tora Bora in December 2001.
In several past videotapes of bin Laden, the al Qaeda leader did not move his left arm.
Rumsfeld pointed out that the tape still hasn't been authenticated.
"If he's [bin Laden's] alive, which he may very well be or may not be, as far as I know -- if he is alive and he's not able to function, doing what they're doing with tapes is probably the smartest thing to do," Rumsfeld said of the statement's release.
'Something big and nasty is coming'
But there is concern among intelligence officials that an al Qaeda broadcast statement may be followed by new attacks.
In an October 2002 audiotape, which coincided with the anniversary of the coalition attack on the Taliban and al Qaeda in Afghanistan, al-Zawahiri said, "God willing, we will continue targeting the keys of the American economy."
Four days after that tape was released, terrorists bombed two Bali nightclubs, killing more than 180 people, mostly young tourists from Australia. Citizens from at least 12 other countries -- including Indonesia, Britain, France, Germany, Sweden and the United States -- were also killed in the blasts.
Eric Margoli, a columnist for the Toronto Sun and author of the book, "War at the Top of the World: The Struggle for Afghanistan, Kashmir and Tibet" said there have been other warning signs.
"Islamic publications have been carrying a message from bin Laden, saying that he is going to mount a spectacular martyrdom operation -- as he calls it -- and will die within the next 12 months," said Margoli. "So the chance that something big and nasty is coming is heightened."
At a speech Wednesday afternoon at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia, President Bush said he had not yet heard the tape.
Bush said that on Thursday's anniversary of the September 11, 2001, attacks, Americans should keep in mind the "determined and ruthless enemy that still plots against our people."
"We will keep them on the run. We will bring them to justice," he vowed during a speech on Homeland Security at the FBI's laboratory in Quantico, Virginia. He also noted that with U.S. efforts, "Al Qaeda has lost nearly two-thirds of its known leaders."
"We're determined to prevent terrorist networks from gaining weapons of mass destruction. We're committed to spreading democracy and tolerance and freedom in the Middle East, to replace the hatred and bitterness with progress and hope and peace," Bush said.
The purported voice of al-Zawahiri on the tape also referred to the Mideast, addressing "our Muslim brothers in Palestine."
"The wound of Palestine is bleeding in the heart of every Muslim, and with the help of God we will not let America enjoy peace and security until the Palestinian issue is resolved," the voice said.
"We tell them we are on the path of jihad, and we ask that the Muslim brothers not to be deceived by America," the voice said. "Palestine will not be liberated but with jihad, so never, never give up your weapons."
CNN National Security Correspondent David Ensor and National Correspondent Mike Boettcher contributed to this report
Find this article at:
http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/meast/09/10/binladen.tape/index.html
Al-Jazeera TV faces ban for inciting hatred
Al-Jazeera TV faces ban for inciting hatred
By Sean O'Neill
Last Updated: 11:14am GMT 05/11/2001
AL-JAZEERA television could be banned from broadcasting in Britain if its transmission of Osama bin Laden's latest video statement is judged to incite racial or religious hatred.
The Independent Television Commission is monitoring al-Jazeera's output and will today examine the content of bin Laden's weekend video, in which he urged Muslims to wage religious war on the "infidel". On the ITC's advice, the Government can proscribe any channel that is guilty of incitement to hatred.
The Qatar-based Arabic language network has been available free since August in the six million British homes that subscribe to Sky Digital - providing a potential audience of 10 million people. Al-Jazeera is licensed by the French broadcasting authorities, allowing it to screen its output anywhere in the European Union.
The CIA fears that bin Laden's statements may contain coded messages to terrorists and Downing Street asked news broadcasters last month to exercise caution when reporting al-Qa'eda videos.
Short extracts of bin Laden's latest video were shown with editorial commentary on BBC, ITN and Sky news programmes. The entire video, lasting several minutes, was shown on al-Jazeera. In his broadcast, bin Laden sought to characterise the war on terrorism as a "fundamentally religious" conflict.
Tessa Jowell, the culture secretary, has revealed in a parliamentary written answer that al-Jazeera's output is being monitored by the ITC to see if it breaches the EU Television Without Frontiers directive.
That rule requires EU states to "ensure that broadcasts do not contain any incitement to hatred on grounds of race, sex, religion or nationality".
Mrs Jowell said: "It is open to the Government, on the advice of the ITC, to proscribe a television broadcaster which broadcasts from another member state where the broadcasts contain material which manifestly, seriously and gravely infringes this prohibition, on at least two occasions in a 12-month period."
Before this weekend's video broadcast the ITC's "monitoring of al-Jazeera has not led it to conclude that proscription would be justified". Sky said it was legally required to allow al-Jazeera to broadcast and had no power to control its output.
By Sean O'Neill
Last Updated: 11:14am GMT 05/11/2001
AL-JAZEERA television could be banned from broadcasting in Britain if its transmission of Osama bin Laden's latest video statement is judged to incite racial or religious hatred.
The Independent Television Commission is monitoring al-Jazeera's output and will today examine the content of bin Laden's weekend video, in which he urged Muslims to wage religious war on the "infidel". On the ITC's advice, the Government can proscribe any channel that is guilty of incitement to hatred.
The Qatar-based Arabic language network has been available free since August in the six million British homes that subscribe to Sky Digital - providing a potential audience of 10 million people. Al-Jazeera is licensed by the French broadcasting authorities, allowing it to screen its output anywhere in the European Union.
The CIA fears that bin Laden's statements may contain coded messages to terrorists and Downing Street asked news broadcasters last month to exercise caution when reporting al-Qa'eda videos.
Short extracts of bin Laden's latest video were shown with editorial commentary on BBC, ITN and Sky news programmes. The entire video, lasting several minutes, was shown on al-Jazeera. In his broadcast, bin Laden sought to characterise the war on terrorism as a "fundamentally religious" conflict.
Tessa Jowell, the culture secretary, has revealed in a parliamentary written answer that al-Jazeera's output is being monitored by the ITC to see if it breaches the EU Television Without Frontiers directive.
That rule requires EU states to "ensure that broadcasts do not contain any incitement to hatred on grounds of race, sex, religion or nationality".
Mrs Jowell said: "It is open to the Government, on the advice of the ITC, to proscribe a television broadcaster which broadcasts from another member state where the broadcasts contain material which manifestly, seriously and gravely infringes this prohibition, on at least two occasions in a 12-month period."
Before this weekend's video broadcast the ITC's "monitoring of al-Jazeera has not led it to conclude that proscription would be justified". Sky said it was legally required to allow al-Jazeera to broadcast and had no power to control its output.
Excerpt: Bin Laden Tape
Excerpt: Bin Laden Tape
Thursday, Dec. 27, 2001
Following is an excerpt of a tape of Osama bin Laden as translated by the U.S. government. In the tape, given to al-Jazeera Satellite Channel Television, bin Laden notes that his statement was made on the three month anniversary of the September 11th attacks, suggesting that he was alive as of early December.
Osama bin Laden: Three months after the blessed strikes against world infidelity and the head of infidelity, namely America, and two months after the fierce crusade against Islam, it gives us pleasure to speak about some of the ramifications of these events. These events have revealed extremely important things to Muslims. It has become clear that the west in general led by America bears an unspeakable crusader grudge against Islam.
Those who lived these months under the continuous bombardment by the various kinds of the U.S. aircraft are well aware of this. Many villages were wiped out without any guilt. Millions of people were expelled during this very cold weather, the oppressed ones of men, women, and children. They now live in tents in Pakistan. The committed no guilt. Although it was a mere suspicion, America launched this fierce campaign.
Those who claim that they are advocates of humanity and freedom we saw here their real crimes. Only a shrapnel is more than enough [to kill] a human being. The weight of this shrapnel is 7 grams. Out of its rancor against the Taliban and Muslims, America dropped on our brothers on the frontlines bombs, weighing 7 tons each.
For those who can calculate, this means 7,000 kilos or 7 million grams while man needs only seven grams, which are more than enough. When the youths -- may God accept them as martyrs -- detonated in Nairobi less than two tons [of explosives], America said that this was a terrorist strike with a weapon of mass destruction. However, it did not refrain from dropping two shells each weighing seven million grams. After bombarding entire villages without any justification but with the purpose of terrorizing people only and making them scared of hosting the Arabs or coming close to them the [U.S.] defense minister stated that this is our right. It is their right to annihilate people so long as they are Muslims and non-American. This is crime per se. It is clear and conspicuous and all the statements you hear them say it was carried out by mistake is pure lies. A few days ago, they hit what the claimed to be al-Qaeda positions in Khost and dropped a guided missile at a mosque. They said that this was a mistake. After investigations, it was confirmed that the ulema were reciting their Ramadan night prayers. They had a meeting after these prayers with the hero struggler Shaykh Jalal-al-Din Haqqani, one of the most prominent former leaders of the jihad against the Soviet Union, who rejected the U.S. occupation of Afghanistan. They bombarded the mosque while the Muslims were praying, killing 150. This was their fate but Shaykh Jala was not hurt. May God grant him long life. This is the crusader grudge. Those who repeat words without realizing their consequences would be careful when they say that they condemn terrorism. Our terrorism against America is benign. It seeks to make the unjust stop making injustice. It seeks to make America stop its support for Israel while kills our people.
© 2001 The Washington Post Company
Thursday, Dec. 27, 2001
Following is an excerpt of a tape of Osama bin Laden as translated by the U.S. government. In the tape, given to al-Jazeera Satellite Channel Television, bin Laden notes that his statement was made on the three month anniversary of the September 11th attacks, suggesting that he was alive as of early December.
Osama bin Laden: Three months after the blessed strikes against world infidelity and the head of infidelity, namely America, and two months after the fierce crusade against Islam, it gives us pleasure to speak about some of the ramifications of these events. These events have revealed extremely important things to Muslims. It has become clear that the west in general led by America bears an unspeakable crusader grudge against Islam.
Those who lived these months under the continuous bombardment by the various kinds of the U.S. aircraft are well aware of this. Many villages were wiped out without any guilt. Millions of people were expelled during this very cold weather, the oppressed ones of men, women, and children. They now live in tents in Pakistan. The committed no guilt. Although it was a mere suspicion, America launched this fierce campaign.
Those who claim that they are advocates of humanity and freedom we saw here their real crimes. Only a shrapnel is more than enough [to kill] a human being. The weight of this shrapnel is 7 grams. Out of its rancor against the Taliban and Muslims, America dropped on our brothers on the frontlines bombs, weighing 7 tons each.
For those who can calculate, this means 7,000 kilos or 7 million grams while man needs only seven grams, which are more than enough. When the youths -- may God accept them as martyrs -- detonated in Nairobi less than two tons [of explosives], America said that this was a terrorist strike with a weapon of mass destruction. However, it did not refrain from dropping two shells each weighing seven million grams. After bombarding entire villages without any justification but with the purpose of terrorizing people only and making them scared of hosting the Arabs or coming close to them the [U.S.] defense minister stated that this is our right. It is their right to annihilate people so long as they are Muslims and non-American. This is crime per se. It is clear and conspicuous and all the statements you hear them say it was carried out by mistake is pure lies. A few days ago, they hit what the claimed to be al-Qaeda positions in Khost and dropped a guided missile at a mosque. They said that this was a mistake. After investigations, it was confirmed that the ulema were reciting their Ramadan night prayers. They had a meeting after these prayers with the hero struggler Shaykh Jalal-al-Din Haqqani, one of the most prominent former leaders of the jihad against the Soviet Union, who rejected the U.S. occupation of Afghanistan. They bombarded the mosque while the Muslims were praying, killing 150. This was their fate but Shaykh Jala was not hurt. May God grant him long life. This is the crusader grudge. Those who repeat words without realizing their consequences would be careful when they say that they condemn terrorism. Our terrorism against America is benign. It seeks to make the unjust stop making injustice. It seeks to make America stop its support for Israel while kills our people.
© 2001 The Washington Post Company
US casts doubt on bin Laden's latest message
US casts doubt on bin Laden's latest message
By Toby Harnden in Washington
Last Updated: 11:52pm GMT 27/12/2001
OSAMA BIN LADEN heaped praise on 'the 19 students who shook the American empire' in the September 11 attacks in a chilling video shown in full last night by an Arab television station.
The recording was dismissed by the Bush administration yesterday as sick propaganda possibly designed to mask the fact the al-Qa'eda leader was already dead.
In the full version of the latest tape of the Saudi exile broadcast by the satellite channel al-Jazeera in Qatar, bin Laden called on Muslims to "concentrate on hitting the US economy with every available means" in the hope that "if their economy is finished they will become too busy to enslave oppressed people".
But several inconsistencies undermined claims that the video was shot around Dec 11 or that bin Laden had escaped from the Tora Bora cave complex to Pakistan.
Reacting last night to the contention of the new Afghan defence minister, Gen Rashid Dostum, that bin Laden had fled, Donald Rumsfeld, US defence secretary, said: "We get six, seven, eight, 10, 12 conflicting reports every day. I've stopped chasing them."
He added, to laughter from reporters at a Pentagon briefing: "We do know of certainty that he is in Afghanistan or some other country or dead."
The growing doubts about the tape came as al-Jazeera, which has faithfully shown footage sent to it by the the al-Qa'eda leader, broadcast all 34 minutes of the latest video after showing only excerpts on Wednesday.
Bin Laden was shown hailing the "blessed strikes" of September 11 that were "in response to what is happening in Palestine and Iraq".
The 19 terrorist hijackers hit "the mightiest power", he gloated, and caused losses of "more than a trillion dollars on the New York market and elsewhere".
He said: "They used the enemy's planes and studied at enemy schools without the need for training camps. But God helped them and taught this cruel lesson to those arrogant people."
Bin Laden ended his statement with a poem dedicated to the September 11 suicide bombers. As he recited the words, his voice trembled and his eyes moistened.
Although intended to rally support for bin Laden's jihad against the West and to undermine American morale, the video appeared to have achieved the opposite effect, both because of bin Laden's gaunt, frail appearance and the uncertainty over when it was filmed.
American officials argued that bin Laden's frequent references to US support for Israel were a bogus justification for his terrorism because in the "dinner party" tape of a private conversation, there was no mention of the Middle East.
That tape was released by the Bush administration a fortnight ago.
Bin Laden's voice was detected regularly until two weeks ago by intelligence operatives monitoring radio transmissions in Tora Bora, according to the Pentagon.
Since then, nothing has been heard from the al-Qa'eda leader and President Bush has hinted in private that bin Laden's silence could mean he has been killed.
White House aides said the video could have been made more than a month ago as the only proof of timing was a reference to the damage to a mosque in Khost taking place "a few days ago".
That meant the filming took place after Nov 16, when a stray bomb hit the mosque.
Bin Laden claimed in the video that he was speaking three months after the September 11 attacks but Mr Bush's advisers believe he would have held up a newspaper or other proof of the date had this been the case.
"He could have made the video and then ordered that it be released in the event of his death," said one White House aide.
"The guy is trying to show he's untouched by the US bombing but he looks under pressure to me."
Bin Laden's beard was much whiter than on Nov 3, the last time al-Jazeera broadcast a video of him, and he appeared much older than his 44 years. Lack of sunlight and a poor diet seemed to have taken a toll on him.
There was widespread scepticism in Washington about al-Jazeera's claim that the video was sent by courier from Pakistan and there were suggestions that this could be disinformation designed to trick Americans into thinking he had fled Afghanistan.
Courier services are closely monitored in Pakistan and it is not possible to send parcels anonymously.
Attention was also drawn to bin Laden's left arm, which hung limply by his side while he gesticulated with his right. Bin Laden is left-handed and there was speculation he may have been injured in an American strike.
Mr Bush was not expected to make any public comment on the broadcast.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2001/12/28/wbin28.xml&page=4
By Toby Harnden in Washington
Last Updated: 11:52pm GMT 27/12/2001
OSAMA BIN LADEN heaped praise on 'the 19 students who shook the American empire' in the September 11 attacks in a chilling video shown in full last night by an Arab television station.
The recording was dismissed by the Bush administration yesterday as sick propaganda possibly designed to mask the fact the al-Qa'eda leader was already dead.
In the full version of the latest tape of the Saudi exile broadcast by the satellite channel al-Jazeera in Qatar, bin Laden called on Muslims to "concentrate on hitting the US economy with every available means" in the hope that "if their economy is finished they will become too busy to enslave oppressed people".
But several inconsistencies undermined claims that the video was shot around Dec 11 or that bin Laden had escaped from the Tora Bora cave complex to Pakistan.
Reacting last night to the contention of the new Afghan defence minister, Gen Rashid Dostum, that bin Laden had fled, Donald Rumsfeld, US defence secretary, said: "We get six, seven, eight, 10, 12 conflicting reports every day. I've stopped chasing them."
He added, to laughter from reporters at a Pentagon briefing: "We do know of certainty that he is in Afghanistan or some other country or dead."
The growing doubts about the tape came as al-Jazeera, which has faithfully shown footage sent to it by the the al-Qa'eda leader, broadcast all 34 minutes of the latest video after showing only excerpts on Wednesday.
Bin Laden was shown hailing the "blessed strikes" of September 11 that were "in response to what is happening in Palestine and Iraq".
The 19 terrorist hijackers hit "the mightiest power", he gloated, and caused losses of "more than a trillion dollars on the New York market and elsewhere".
He said: "They used the enemy's planes and studied at enemy schools without the need for training camps. But God helped them and taught this cruel lesson to those arrogant people."
Bin Laden ended his statement with a poem dedicated to the September 11 suicide bombers. As he recited the words, his voice trembled and his eyes moistened.
Although intended to rally support for bin Laden's jihad against the West and to undermine American morale, the video appeared to have achieved the opposite effect, both because of bin Laden's gaunt, frail appearance and the uncertainty over when it was filmed.
American officials argued that bin Laden's frequent references to US support for Israel were a bogus justification for his terrorism because in the "dinner party" tape of a private conversation, there was no mention of the Middle East.
That tape was released by the Bush administration a fortnight ago.
Bin Laden's voice was detected regularly until two weeks ago by intelligence operatives monitoring radio transmissions in Tora Bora, according to the Pentagon.
Since then, nothing has been heard from the al-Qa'eda leader and President Bush has hinted in private that bin Laden's silence could mean he has been killed.
White House aides said the video could have been made more than a month ago as the only proof of timing was a reference to the damage to a mosque in Khost taking place "a few days ago".
That meant the filming took place after Nov 16, when a stray bomb hit the mosque.
Bin Laden claimed in the video that he was speaking three months after the September 11 attacks but Mr Bush's advisers believe he would have held up a newspaper or other proof of the date had this been the case.
"He could have made the video and then ordered that it be released in the event of his death," said one White House aide.
"The guy is trying to show he's untouched by the US bombing but he looks under pressure to me."
Bin Laden's beard was much whiter than on Nov 3, the last time al-Jazeera broadcast a video of him, and he appeared much older than his 44 years. Lack of sunlight and a poor diet seemed to have taken a toll on him.
There was widespread scepticism in Washington about al-Jazeera's claim that the video was sent by courier from Pakistan and there were suggestions that this could be disinformation designed to trick Americans into thinking he had fled Afghanistan.
Courier services are closely monitored in Pakistan and it is not possible to send parcels anonymously.
Attention was also drawn to bin Laden's left arm, which hung limply by his side while he gesticulated with his right. Bin Laden is left-handed and there was speculation he may have been injured in an American strike.
Mr Bush was not expected to make any public comment on the broadcast.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2001/12/28/wbin28.xml&page=4
Fact file: Osama bin Laden statements
MSNBC.com
Fact file Osama bin Laden statements
Since Sept. 11, 2001, Osama bin Laden has issued 13 statements, either audio or video. Here, in reverse order, is a list of the statements, whether audio or video and when the U.S. intelligence community believes they were recorded:
Oct. 29, 2004 (Contemporaneous)
In a videotape broadcast on al-Jazeera, bin Laden warns Americans that "your security is not in the hands of Kerry or Bush or al-Qaida. Your security is in your own hands." He also claims full responsibility for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks in the United States.
April 15, 2004 (Contemporaneous)
In an audio tape message, bin Laden offers a truce to European countries if they leave the Middle East within 90 days, threatening that if they don't, al-Qaida will attack European targets.
Jan. 4, 2004 (Contemporaneous)
The al-Qaida leader said in an audio tape that Muslim and Arab leaders were jolted by Saddam's ouster since it showed that dictatorial regimes could be toppled by foreign forces.
Oct. 18, 2003
Al-Jazeera broadcasts two audiotapes said to be made by Osama bin Laden, vowing more suicide attacks inside and outside the United States and demanding the United States withdraw from Iraq. "We, God willing, will continue to fight you and will continue martyrdom operations."
Sept. 10, 2003 (Most likely shot in 2001)
Al-Jazeera airs a combined audio and videotape showing bin Laden walking down a mountain path with Ayman al Zawahiri, his chief lieutenant. U.S. officials noted that the audio from bin Laden did not make any references to current events, while Zawahiri did, leading them to believe that Zawahiri's comments were recent and bin Laden's had been recorded at some point in the past.
April 8, 2003 (Contemporaneous)
On the eve of the U.S. capturing Baghdad, bin Laden urges suicide attacks and calls on Muslims to rise up against Arab governments that support the U.S.-led attack on Iraq.
Feb. 16, 2003 (Contemporaneous)
Entitled, "Bin Laden's Sermon for the Feast of the Sacrifice," the statement as broadcast on al-Jazeera, criticizes President Bush and British Prime Minister Blair for planning the war on Iraq. In it, bin Laden states the plans do not end with Iraq: "The preparations underway at present for an attack upon Iraq are but one link in a chain of attacks -- [currently] in preparation -- on the countries of the region, including Syria, Iran, Egypt and Sudan."
Feb. 11, 2003 (Contemporaneous)
Bin Laden criticizes U.S. plans for war on Iraq, citing Baghdad's historical role as a capital of Islam. In the statement, carried on al-Jazeera, bin Laden states: "We are following up with great interest and extreme concern the crusaders' preparations for war to occupy a former capital of Islam."
Nov. 12, 2002 (Contemporaneous)
Bin Laden calls Bush the "pharaoh of this age" and lists recent attacks in a statement carried on al-Jazeera. Specifically, he notes: "The incidents that have taken place since the raids on New York and Washington up until now -- like the killing of Germans in Tunisia and the French in Karachi, the bombing of the giant French tanker in Yemen, the killing of marines in Failaka [in Kuwait] and the British and Australians in the Bali explosions, the recent operation in Moscow and some sporadic operations here and there -- are only reactions and reciprocal actions." It is the first bin Laden message that can be dated in nearly a year.
April 17-18, 2002 (Shot in Oct. 2001)
The "Riverside tape," believed shot in October 2001, is shown on Arabic language broadcasters MBC and al-Jazeera in slightly different versions. In this tape, bin Laden praises the impact the Sept. 11 attacks had on the U.S. economy.
Dec. 27, 2001 (Shot late Nov. 2001)
The "Gaunt Tape," so named because bin Laden is haggard and doesn't move his left arm, is believed to have been recorded around Nov. 19, 2001. In the tape, bin Laden refers to the U.S. bombing of a mosque in Khost "several days" earlier. The U.S. bombed a mosque in Khost on Nov. 16. Bin Laden does not move his left arm and his appearance is both gaunt and pale. Al-Jazeera airs the tape.
Nov. 3, 2001 (Shot late Oct./early Nov.)
Bin Laden, dressed in camouflage and armed with an AK-47, says in a tape aired by al-Jazeera that the war in Afghanistan is in a religious war. "The people of Afghanistan had nothing to do with this matter. The campaign, however, continues to unjustly annihilate the villagers and civilians, children, women and innocent people."
Oct. 7, 2001 (Shot in late Sept./early Oct.)
A threatening tape released at the start of the U.S. attacks on Afghanistan and shown on al-Jazeera. It is believed to have been shot in late September or early October. Also on tape are bin Laden spokesman Abu Ghaith, chief lieutenant Ayman al Zawahiri, and Mohammed Atef, bin Laden's military commander.
Source: NBC News
© 2007 MSNBC.com
URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6363306/
Fact file Osama bin Laden statements
Since Sept. 11, 2001, Osama bin Laden has issued 13 statements, either audio or video. Here, in reverse order, is a list of the statements, whether audio or video and when the U.S. intelligence community believes they were recorded:
Oct. 29, 2004 (Contemporaneous)
In a videotape broadcast on al-Jazeera, bin Laden warns Americans that "your security is not in the hands of Kerry or Bush or al-Qaida. Your security is in your own hands." He also claims full responsibility for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks in the United States.
April 15, 2004 (Contemporaneous)
In an audio tape message, bin Laden offers a truce to European countries if they leave the Middle East within 90 days, threatening that if they don't, al-Qaida will attack European targets.
Jan. 4, 2004 (Contemporaneous)
The al-Qaida leader said in an audio tape that Muslim and Arab leaders were jolted by Saddam's ouster since it showed that dictatorial regimes could be toppled by foreign forces.
Oct. 18, 2003
Al-Jazeera broadcasts two audiotapes said to be made by Osama bin Laden, vowing more suicide attacks inside and outside the United States and demanding the United States withdraw from Iraq. "We, God willing, will continue to fight you and will continue martyrdom operations."
Sept. 10, 2003 (Most likely shot in 2001)
Al-Jazeera airs a combined audio and videotape showing bin Laden walking down a mountain path with Ayman al Zawahiri, his chief lieutenant. U.S. officials noted that the audio from bin Laden did not make any references to current events, while Zawahiri did, leading them to believe that Zawahiri's comments were recent and bin Laden's had been recorded at some point in the past.
April 8, 2003 (Contemporaneous)
On the eve of the U.S. capturing Baghdad, bin Laden urges suicide attacks and calls on Muslims to rise up against Arab governments that support the U.S.-led attack on Iraq.
Feb. 16, 2003 (Contemporaneous)
Entitled, "Bin Laden's Sermon for the Feast of the Sacrifice," the statement as broadcast on al-Jazeera, criticizes President Bush and British Prime Minister Blair for planning the war on Iraq. In it, bin Laden states the plans do not end with Iraq: "The preparations underway at present for an attack upon Iraq are but one link in a chain of attacks -- [currently] in preparation -- on the countries of the region, including Syria, Iran, Egypt and Sudan."
Feb. 11, 2003 (Contemporaneous)
Bin Laden criticizes U.S. plans for war on Iraq, citing Baghdad's historical role as a capital of Islam. In the statement, carried on al-Jazeera, bin Laden states: "We are following up with great interest and extreme concern the crusaders' preparations for war to occupy a former capital of Islam."
Nov. 12, 2002 (Contemporaneous)
Bin Laden calls Bush the "pharaoh of this age" and lists recent attacks in a statement carried on al-Jazeera. Specifically, he notes: "The incidents that have taken place since the raids on New York and Washington up until now -- like the killing of Germans in Tunisia and the French in Karachi, the bombing of the giant French tanker in Yemen, the killing of marines in Failaka [in Kuwait] and the British and Australians in the Bali explosions, the recent operation in Moscow and some sporadic operations here and there -- are only reactions and reciprocal actions." It is the first bin Laden message that can be dated in nearly a year.
April 17-18, 2002 (Shot in Oct. 2001)
The "Riverside tape," believed shot in October 2001, is shown on Arabic language broadcasters MBC and al-Jazeera in slightly different versions. In this tape, bin Laden praises the impact the Sept. 11 attacks had on the U.S. economy.
Dec. 27, 2001 (Shot late Nov. 2001)
The "Gaunt Tape," so named because bin Laden is haggard and doesn't move his left arm, is believed to have been recorded around Nov. 19, 2001. In the tape, bin Laden refers to the U.S. bombing of a mosque in Khost "several days" earlier. The U.S. bombed a mosque in Khost on Nov. 16. Bin Laden does not move his left arm and his appearance is both gaunt and pale. Al-Jazeera airs the tape.
Nov. 3, 2001 (Shot late Oct./early Nov.)
Bin Laden, dressed in camouflage and armed with an AK-47, says in a tape aired by al-Jazeera that the war in Afghanistan is in a religious war. "The people of Afghanistan had nothing to do with this matter. The campaign, however, continues to unjustly annihilate the villagers and civilians, children, women and innocent people."
Oct. 7, 2001 (Shot in late Sept./early Oct.)
A threatening tape released at the start of the U.S. attacks on Afghanistan and shown on al-Jazeera. It is believed to have been shot in late September or early October. Also on tape are bin Laden spokesman Abu Ghaith, chief lieutenant Ayman al Zawahiri, and Mohammed Atef, bin Laden's military commander.
Source: NBC News
© 2007 MSNBC.com
URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6363306/
Al-Jazeera: Bin Laden tape obtained in Pakistan
Al-Jazeera: Bin Laden tape obtained in Pakistan
In message, al-Qaida leader says neither Bush nor Kerry can protect U.S.
Oct. 29, 2004: Osama bin Laden says neither President Bush nor Sen. John Kerry can protect the American people. NBC’s Pete Williams reports.
NBC News
Updated: 6:46 a.m. ET Oct 30, 2004
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - The Arabic television channel Al-Jazeera said Saturday that it received the latest videotaped message from al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden at its offices in the Pakistani capital.
In the videotaped message, bin Laden claims full responsibility for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks in the United States and warns Americans that “your security is not in the hands of Kerry or Bush or al-Qaida. Your security is in your own hands"
White House press secretary Scott McClellan said U.S. intelligence analysts, who were reviewing the tape, believed that the message was authentic and had been produced recently.
The tape was dropped off at the gate of the station’s office in an envelope on Friday, just hours before it aired, said Ahmad Muaffaq Zaidan, Al-Jazeera’s bureau chief in Pakistan.
“We received it in Pakistan. ... Somebody dropped it yesterday at the gate,” Zaidan told The Associated Press. “The guard brought it to me along with other mail. It was in an envelope, I opened it and it was a big scoop.”
Zaidan said he immediately transmitted the tape to Al-Jazeera’s headquarters in the Persian Gulf nation of Qatar.
Bin Laden and his top deputy, Egyptian surgeon Ayman al-Zawahri, are both believed to be hiding in the mountains that straddle the Afghan-Pakistan border, although there has been no hard evidence of their whereabouts for more than three years.
A senior State Department official told NBC News that the Qatari government told the United States about the tape within the last day. The U.S. ambassador, Chase Untermeyer, unsuccessfully lobbied Qatari officials to persuade Al-Jazeera not to air it, the official said.
U.S. officials told NBC News that there was no plan to raise the terrorist threat level, currently at yellow, or “elevated,” because bin Laden makes no specific threat. He does, however, warn that the “main reasons” for the Sept. 11 attacks “are still existing to repeat what happened before.”
‘We are a free people’
In the tape, bin Laden — wearing traditional white robes, a turban and a tan cloak — reads from papers at a lectern against a plain brown background. Speaking quietly in an even voice, he tells the American people that he ordered the Sept. 11 attacks because “we are a free people” who wanted to “regain the freedom” of their nation.
“Do not play with our security, and spontaneously you will secure yourself,” he says, according to a translation by NBC News.
• Bush: Americans won’t be ‘intimidated’
Oct. 29: Reacting to the new Osama bin Laden videotape, President Bush says, “We’re at war with these terrorists, and I’m confident we will prevail.”
U.S. officials told The Associated Press that one part of their analysis would be to discern whether there were hidden messages or clues about a possible future attack. But they said it was too early to know that yet.
Bush was informed of the tape aboard Air Force One late Friday morning by national security adviser Condoleezza Rice. “Americans will not be intimidated or influenced by an enemy of our country,” he told reporters at the airport in Toledo, Ohio.
“I’m sure Senator Kerry will agree with me.”
“I also want to say we are at war with these terrorists,” said Bush, who added that he was “confident we will prevail.”
Sen. John Kerry, the Democratic presidential candidate, echoed Bush's comments.
“As Americans, we are absolutely united in our determination to hunt down and destroy Osama bin Laden and the terrorists," Kerry said in West Palm Beach, Fla. “They’re barbarians, and I will stop at absolutely nothing to hunt down, capture or kill the terrorists wherever they are, whatever it takes, period.”
Pakistani Interior Minister Aftab Khan Sherpao said authorities have no information about who might have given Al-Jazeera the tape, but he stuck to Pakistan’s position that there was no proof bin Laden is in the country.
“We have no idea where they got it,” he told AP. “I don’t think he is in Pakistan.”
Change of rhetoric
NBC’s Richard Engel reported that bin Laden spoke in a modern style of Arabic, in contrast to the flowery Quranic language he has used in previous messages. He appeared to be speaking in a fashion he thought would be better suited to this target audience, the American people.
Although he mentions Kerry, most of bin Laden’s message is in regard to Bush, who faces Kerry in next week’s presidential election. He accuses President Bush of “misleading” the American people for the three years since the Sept. 11 attacks.
In no previous authenticated message — audio or video — had bin Laden explicitly stated that he ordered the 2001 attacks, which killed almost 3,000 people.
But in the new tape, he claims full responsibility. “We decided to destroy towers in America so they may taste what we have tasted,” he says, clearly referring to the World Trade Center.
In the course of his comments, bin Laden revealed just how patiently he awaited his opportunity to strike the West. He said he first vowed to destroy “the buildings of tyrants” after the devastating Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982 — 19 years before he directed followers to fly four jetliners into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and an unknown third target.
At one point, bin Laden ridicules Bush for reacting slowly to the 2001 attacks.
“We never thought that the high commander of the U.S. armies would leave 50,000 of his citizens in both towers to face the horrors by themselves when they most needed him because it seemed to distract his attention from listening to the girl telling him about her goat butting,” he says, referring to Bush’s decision to wait more than seven minutes after being informed of the attacks before leaving an elementary room classroom in Florida where a student was reading a story called “The Pet Goat.”
Bin Laden admits setbacks
U.S. officials told NBC News that in parts of the tape not aired by Al-Jazeera, bin Laden acknowledges that the recent Afghan elections were not a success for him because “they came off with minimal violence.” And he admits that “aggressive Pakistani operations” in South Waziristan, where he is believed to be hiding, have hurt his operations.
Maj. Gen. Shaukat Sultan, the Pakistani army spokesman, said he doubted bin Laden was in the country, pointing to intense efforts to hunt down al-Qaida fugitives in the tribal regions along the border with Afghanistan.
Retired Air Force Lt. Col. Rick Francona, a Middle East specialist and former military official at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq, said the tape was surprising in that it appeared to demonstrate that bin Laden was in good health. Bin Laden’s condition has been the subject of intense speculation since the United States launched massive airstrikes in Afghanistan after the Sept. 11 attacks.
The last authenticated contemporaneous video message from bin Laden appeared in December 2001, when he discussed a U.S. attack on a mosque. U.S. officials told NBC News that all subsequent videos of bin Laden were believed to have been recorded around the time of the Sept. 11 attacks and broadcast much later.
The last audio message from bin Laden was on May 6, when he offered rewards in gold for the assassination of top U.S. and U.N. officials in Iraq. On Oct. 1, al-Zawahri, bin Laden’s second-in-command, issued an audiotape calling on young Muslims to strike the United States and its allies.
ABC News also received a purported al-Qaida tape in Pakistan in recent days, this one showing a shrouded man claiming to be an American member of the terror network who threatened more attacks and said U.S. streets would “run red with blood.”
Intelligence officials, however, have not been able to verify the tape’s authenticity. Both the bin Laden video and the one aired by ABC News carried banners attributing them to the Sahab Production Committee, a purported al-Qaida propaganda company.
MSNBC.com’s Alex Johnson, NBC’s Pete Williams and Tamara Kupperman in Washington, Richard Engel in Baghdad and Robert Windrem in New York, and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6363306/
In message, al-Qaida leader says neither Bush nor Kerry can protect U.S.
Oct. 29, 2004: Osama bin Laden says neither President Bush nor Sen. John Kerry can protect the American people. NBC’s Pete Williams reports.
NBC News
Updated: 6:46 a.m. ET Oct 30, 2004
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - The Arabic television channel Al-Jazeera said Saturday that it received the latest videotaped message from al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden at its offices in the Pakistani capital.
In the videotaped message, bin Laden claims full responsibility for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks in the United States and warns Americans that “your security is not in the hands of Kerry or Bush or al-Qaida. Your security is in your own hands"
White House press secretary Scott McClellan said U.S. intelligence analysts, who were reviewing the tape, believed that the message was authentic and had been produced recently.
The tape was dropped off at the gate of the station’s office in an envelope on Friday, just hours before it aired, said Ahmad Muaffaq Zaidan, Al-Jazeera’s bureau chief in Pakistan.
“We received it in Pakistan. ... Somebody dropped it yesterday at the gate,” Zaidan told The Associated Press. “The guard brought it to me along with other mail. It was in an envelope, I opened it and it was a big scoop.”
Zaidan said he immediately transmitted the tape to Al-Jazeera’s headquarters in the Persian Gulf nation of Qatar.
Bin Laden and his top deputy, Egyptian surgeon Ayman al-Zawahri, are both believed to be hiding in the mountains that straddle the Afghan-Pakistan border, although there has been no hard evidence of their whereabouts for more than three years.
A senior State Department official told NBC News that the Qatari government told the United States about the tape within the last day. The U.S. ambassador, Chase Untermeyer, unsuccessfully lobbied Qatari officials to persuade Al-Jazeera not to air it, the official said.
U.S. officials told NBC News that there was no plan to raise the terrorist threat level, currently at yellow, or “elevated,” because bin Laden makes no specific threat. He does, however, warn that the “main reasons” for the Sept. 11 attacks “are still existing to repeat what happened before.”
‘We are a free people’
In the tape, bin Laden — wearing traditional white robes, a turban and a tan cloak — reads from papers at a lectern against a plain brown background. Speaking quietly in an even voice, he tells the American people that he ordered the Sept. 11 attacks because “we are a free people” who wanted to “regain the freedom” of their nation.
“Do not play with our security, and spontaneously you will secure yourself,” he says, according to a translation by NBC News.
• Bush: Americans won’t be ‘intimidated’
Oct. 29: Reacting to the new Osama bin Laden videotape, President Bush says, “We’re at war with these terrorists, and I’m confident we will prevail.”
U.S. officials told The Associated Press that one part of their analysis would be to discern whether there were hidden messages or clues about a possible future attack. But they said it was too early to know that yet.
Bush was informed of the tape aboard Air Force One late Friday morning by national security adviser Condoleezza Rice. “Americans will not be intimidated or influenced by an enemy of our country,” he told reporters at the airport in Toledo, Ohio.
“I’m sure Senator Kerry will agree with me.”
“I also want to say we are at war with these terrorists,” said Bush, who added that he was “confident we will prevail.”
Sen. John Kerry, the Democratic presidential candidate, echoed Bush's comments.
“As Americans, we are absolutely united in our determination to hunt down and destroy Osama bin Laden and the terrorists," Kerry said in West Palm Beach, Fla. “They’re barbarians, and I will stop at absolutely nothing to hunt down, capture or kill the terrorists wherever they are, whatever it takes, period.”
Pakistani Interior Minister Aftab Khan Sherpao said authorities have no information about who might have given Al-Jazeera the tape, but he stuck to Pakistan’s position that there was no proof bin Laden is in the country.
“We have no idea where they got it,” he told AP. “I don’t think he is in Pakistan.”
Change of rhetoric
NBC’s Richard Engel reported that bin Laden spoke in a modern style of Arabic, in contrast to the flowery Quranic language he has used in previous messages. He appeared to be speaking in a fashion he thought would be better suited to this target audience, the American people.
Although he mentions Kerry, most of bin Laden’s message is in regard to Bush, who faces Kerry in next week’s presidential election. He accuses President Bush of “misleading” the American people for the three years since the Sept. 11 attacks.
In no previous authenticated message — audio or video — had bin Laden explicitly stated that he ordered the 2001 attacks, which killed almost 3,000 people.
But in the new tape, he claims full responsibility. “We decided to destroy towers in America so they may taste what we have tasted,” he says, clearly referring to the World Trade Center.
In the course of his comments, bin Laden revealed just how patiently he awaited his opportunity to strike the West. He said he first vowed to destroy “the buildings of tyrants” after the devastating Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982 — 19 years before he directed followers to fly four jetliners into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and an unknown third target.
At one point, bin Laden ridicules Bush for reacting slowly to the 2001 attacks.
“We never thought that the high commander of the U.S. armies would leave 50,000 of his citizens in both towers to face the horrors by themselves when they most needed him because it seemed to distract his attention from listening to the girl telling him about her goat butting,” he says, referring to Bush’s decision to wait more than seven minutes after being informed of the attacks before leaving an elementary room classroom in Florida where a student was reading a story called “The Pet Goat.”
Bin Laden admits setbacks
U.S. officials told NBC News that in parts of the tape not aired by Al-Jazeera, bin Laden acknowledges that the recent Afghan elections were not a success for him because “they came off with minimal violence.” And he admits that “aggressive Pakistani operations” in South Waziristan, where he is believed to be hiding, have hurt his operations.
Maj. Gen. Shaukat Sultan, the Pakistani army spokesman, said he doubted bin Laden was in the country, pointing to intense efforts to hunt down al-Qaida fugitives in the tribal regions along the border with Afghanistan.
Retired Air Force Lt. Col. Rick Francona, a Middle East specialist and former military official at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq, said the tape was surprising in that it appeared to demonstrate that bin Laden was in good health. Bin Laden’s condition has been the subject of intense speculation since the United States launched massive airstrikes in Afghanistan after the Sept. 11 attacks.
The last authenticated contemporaneous video message from bin Laden appeared in December 2001, when he discussed a U.S. attack on a mosque. U.S. officials told NBC News that all subsequent videos of bin Laden were believed to have been recorded around the time of the Sept. 11 attacks and broadcast much later.
The last audio message from bin Laden was on May 6, when he offered rewards in gold for the assassination of top U.S. and U.N. officials in Iraq. On Oct. 1, al-Zawahri, bin Laden’s second-in-command, issued an audiotape calling on young Muslims to strike the United States and its allies.
ABC News also received a purported al-Qaida tape in Pakistan in recent days, this one showing a shrouded man claiming to be an American member of the terror network who threatened more attacks and said U.S. streets would “run red with blood.”
Intelligence officials, however, have not been able to verify the tape’s authenticity. Both the bin Laden video and the one aired by ABC News carried banners attributing them to the Sahab Production Committee, a purported al-Qaida propaganda company.
MSNBC.com’s Alex Johnson, NBC’s Pete Williams and Tamara Kupperman in Washington, Richard Engel in Baghdad and Robert Windrem in New York, and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6363306/
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