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'Bin Laden' message harangues US | 'Bin Laden' message harangues US |
(10 minutes later) | |
An audio message purportedly by al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden has been released on an Islamist website. | An audio message purportedly by al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden has been released on an Islamist website. |
The message, entitled "a statement to the American people", was about 10 minutes long and was accompanied by a still image of Bin Laden but no video. | The message, entitled "a statement to the American people", was about 10 minutes long and was accompanied by a still image of Bin Laden but no video. |
In the message, a voice tells the US president that he is "powerless" to stop the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. | In the message, a voice tells the US president that he is "powerless" to stop the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. |
The message comes just two days after the US marked the eighth anniversary of the 11 September attacks on America. | The message comes just two days after the US marked the eighth anniversary of the 11 September attacks on America. |
'No real change' | |
In the recording, the voice discusses what motivated the al-Qaeda network to launch the 11 September attacks. He explaining that they were, in part, fuelled by US support for Israel. | |
"The time has come for you to liberate yourselves from fear and the ideological terrorism of neo-conservatives and the Israeli lobby," the voice in the tape says. | |
"The reason for our dispute with you is your support for your ally Israel, occupying our land in Palestine." | |
The voice believed to be Bin Laden also speaks of how the conflict between al-Qaeda and the US may end. | |
"If you stop the war, then fine. Otherwise we will have no choice but to continue our war of attrition on every front [...] If you choose safety and stopping wars, as opinion polls show you do, then we are ready to respond to this," it says. | |
In the message, the al-Qaeda leader accuses the new president of failing to fundamentally change foreign policy because of his decision to retain key figures from the previous administration, including Defence Secretary Robert Gates. | |
"If you think about your situation well, you will know that the White House is occupied by pressure groups," he says. | |
Bin Laden is thought to be hiding in mountainous terrain on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. | Bin Laden is thought to be hiding in mountainous terrain on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. |
In his last known message, in June, Bin Laden had said that US President Barack Obama had planted the seeds of "revenge and hatred" towards the US in the Muslim world. | In his last known message, in June, Bin Laden had said that US President Barack Obama had planted the seeds of "revenge and hatred" towards the US in the Muslim world. |