Many folks are getting fooled by differences in lighting, in the particular configuration of his facial muscles happened to be arranged at the moment in time when the shot was taken.
A more rigorous approach would be to compare several still shots. Pixel-by-pixel compares are [u][b]NOT ACCEPTABLE[/b][/u] because the only way they can work is with identical expression, identical lighting, identical camera angle, distance, and exposure. No, the far more powerful and intelligent resources of the human brain are required for such a comparison; a computer is not good enough (unless it’s a highly specialized police program for comparing suspects, simulating aging, etc. - and even then, the component of the human mind in the comparison is still necessary.)
Looking at the relative position, shape, and size of the eyes, the nose, the mouth, this is the same old bin Laden. Differences are the lighting, his dyed beard, his expression, the phoneme he happened to be uttering at the moment the shot took, and most importantly, he has RECOVERED from his kidney disorder and perhaps gained a little weight back as a result; he is healthier.
Agree. BTW, you need to use angle brackets here.