Posted on 11/18/2002 10:02:35 AM PST by ppaul
WASHINGTON, Nov. 18 — U.S. intelligence has concluded that an audiotape of Osama bin Laden broadcast last week is real and was recently recorded, providing the first evidence in almost a year that the al-Qaida leader is alive, officials said Monday. The audiotape, broadcast on an Arab language TV network, does not appear to have been altered or edited, one U.S. official said, suggesting it is what it sounds like: bin Laden promising more terrorism.THE ANALYSIS of the tape was performed by technical experts, linguists and translators at the CIA and National Security Agency, who compared the message to previous recordings of bin Laden. They are as certain as they can be that it is genuine, according to the U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Because it mentions recent terrorist attacks, officials concluded it was made in the last few weeks, the official said. U.S. intelligence had not received any definitive evidence in a year that bin Laden had survived the U.S. campaign in Afghanistan in response to the attacks in Washington, D.C., and New York on Sept. 11, 2001.
The tape gives little clue to bin Laden’s location or his health, officials said. Although his whereabouts are unknown, U.S. officials believe he is probably hiding in a remote mountainous region in the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
The message also was a determining factor in a new spate of terror alerts in the United States and elsewhere last week. Previous public statements from bin Laden have served as preludes to terrorist attacks, officials said.
ALLEGED AL-QAIDA DOCUMENT
The disclosure followed a TV correspondent’s report Saturday that he received an al-Qaida document threatening more attacks in New York and Washington unless America stops supporting Israel and converts to Islam.
Yosri Fouda, who works for the satellite news station Al-Jazeera, said he received the unsigned, six-page document on Wednesday.
In Washington, Homeland Security adviser Tom Ridge downplayed the document. “There are no new threats, there are the same old conditions. It’s just part of the continuing threat environment that we assess,” he said on “Fox News Sunday.”
Fouda would not say how he received the statement, but insisted he was certain it came from the terrorist movement’s leadership.
Fouda said the statement called on Americans to stop supporting Israel and other governments that “oppress” Muslims or face more attacks. The statement also called on Americans to convert to Islam, he said.
“Stop your support for Israel against the Palestinians, for Russians against the Chechens ... for corrupt leaders in our countries ... (and) leave us alone or expect us in Washington and New York,” Fouda quoted the statement as saying.
Appearances by America’s most wanted man
April 17-18, 2002Dec. 27, 2001Dec. 12, 2001Nov. 7, 2001Nov. 3, 2001Oct. 7, 2001Oct. 4, 2001June 20, 2001Jan. 10, 2001Sept. 21, 2000Jan. 15, 1999May 28, 1998August 10, 1997
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 effects the Sept. 11 attacks had on the U.S. economy. Also on tape: Ayman al-Zawahiri, bin Laden’s chief lieutenant.
"The Gaunt Tape," so named because bin Laden is haggard and doesn’t move his left arm, is believed to have been recorded in late November 2001. Al-Jazeera airs the tape. Washington releases tape of the "dinner party" in which bin Laden describes planning for the Sept. 11 attacks. Shot in mid-November, possibly Nov. 9, 2001, in Kandahar. Released by the U.S. government to all broadcasters. Also on tape: Khaled al-Harbi, a Saudi cleric.
Bin Laden’s sons play in the wreckage of a downed U.S. helicopter, believed to have been shot in October. The tape is shown on al-Jazeera. Video later shows up as part of a tape the U.S. government releases in December 2001.
Bin Laden, dressed in camouflage and armed with an AK-47, says in a tape aired by al-Jazeera that 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." There’s no indication of when the tape was shot, but almost certainly it was within weeks, if not days, prior to its release, since it refers to U.S. campaign in Afghanistan. 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: bin Laden spokesman Abu Ghaith, chief lieutenant Ayman al-Zawahiri, and Mohammed Atef, bin Laden’s military commander.
The al-Qaida graduation ceremony tape. Al-Jazeera reports the tape was made after the Sept. 11 attacks, but U.S. intelligence says it was shot in June 2001 to celebrate the merger of al-Qaida and Egyptian Islamic Jihad. Also seen on the tape: Ayman al-Zawahiri, leader of Egyptian Islamic Jihad.
A 98-minute al-Qaida training tape believed to have been shot at various times -- but after the USS Cole bombing in October 2000 and before the U.S. presidential inauguration in January 2001 – is distributed by APTN and Reuters. Bin Laden praises the bombers of the USS Cole: "And the courage of our youth was witnessed in Aden, where they destroyed their destroyer and instilled fear. ... Their ships stand so arrogantly in our ports."
Tape of bin Laden celebrating the marriage of his teenage son, Mohammed, to the daughter of Mohammed Atef, his military commander. The tape was shot the previous day in Afghanistan. Also on the tape: Atef and Mohammed bin Laden.
Tape shown on al-Jazeera of bin Laden and three Egyptian clerics calling for the release of Abdul Rahman, a blind sheik imprisoned in the United States. It’s believed to have been filmed sometime between March and May 2000. Also on the tape: Ayman al-Zawahiri, bin Laden’s lieutenant, and Rifai Ahmad Taha, a leading figure in the armed Egyptian group, Jamaa Islamiya, and Assad Allah, son of Sheikh Abdel Rahman. Shown on Al-Jazeera. In an interview with al-Jazeera, bin Laden praises those who carried out the August 1998 Africa embassy bombings, saying the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya, was hit because "because it was the major U.S. intelligence center in East Africa.” More of the interview with al-Jazeera is broadcast on June 10.
In an interview with ABC's John Miller, bin Laden praises Ramzi Yousef and Wali Khan Amin Shah, convicted in the Day of Hate airliner plot, saying "America will see many youths who will follow Ramzi Yousef." Bin Laden also praises the bombers of the Khobar Towers U.S. barracks in Saudi Arabia. “We predict a black day for America and the end of the United States as United States ... Allah willing." Mohammed Atef also seen on the tape.
In an interview with CNN's Peter Arnett, bin Laden praises the bombing of the U.S. barracks in Saudi Arabia. "If the American government is serious about avoiding the explosions inside the U.S., then let it stop provoking the feelings of 1,250 million Muslims," he says.
JUSTIFICATION FOR KILLING CIVILIANS
He added the statement demanded U.S. troops leave the Arabian Peninsula, and justified the killings of American civilians because they pay taxes that finance military operations.
“The American people are the financiers of the attacks against us; they are watching — through their elected senators — the spending of taxes that pay for planes bombing us in Afghanistan, armies occupying our land in the Arabian Peninsula, tanks (used) against the Palestinians and fleets putting Iraqi children under siege,” the statement said, according to Fouda.
Fouda is a prominent Arab television journalist who has broken several important stories about al-Qaida. In September, Al-Jazeera broadcast Fouda’s interviews with two top al-Qaida operatives hiding in Pakistan, Ramzi Binalshibh and Khaled Sheik Mohammed. Binalshibh was arrested in Karachi, Pakistan, shortly after the broadcast and was transferred to U.S. custody.
Fouda said the statement also referred to the current crisis between the United States and Iraq as one more reason to attack Americans.
“You are placing Muslims under siege in Iraq, where children die every day. Oh, how weird that you don’t care for 1.5 million Iraqi children who died under siege, but when 3,000 of your compatriots died, the whole world was shaken,” Fouda quoted the statement as saying.
HEIGHTENED RISK
In recent weeks, the FBI has issued warnings about possible attacks on U.S. railroads and on the energy industry, as well as a more general warning about heightened risk during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which started Wednesday and ends Dec. 5.
“We’re especially sensitive to time frames which might be thought by the enemy to be a time when they might want to make a statement,” Attorney General John Ashcroft said.
(Excerpt) Read more at msnbc.com ...
That headline almost sounds like we executed bin Laden, and taped it! Oh, if only...
"HELP! THE BOMBS HAVE FALLEN, AND I CAN'T GET UP!"
The audiotape...does not appear to have been altered or edited, one U.S. official said, suggesting it is what it sounds like: bin Laden promising more terrorism.Bummer.
Apparently, that's what happened.
They managed to sneak out another lame sheik: Osama bin-Laden,
September 23, 2001
In a rare interview, Osama binLaden in 1998 explained to John Miller of ABC News why he has declared a holy war on America.
Miller: Mr. bin Laden, to Americans you are an interesting figure: A man who comes from a background of wealth and comforts who ended up fighting on the front lines. Many Americans would think that's unusual.
Bin Laden: Thanks be to Allah. It is hard for one to understand if the person does not understand Islam. Allah is the one who created us and blessed us with this religion, and orders us to carry out the holy struggle "jihad" to raise the word of Allah above the words of the unbelievers.
We believe this is a form of worship we must follow despite our financial ability. This is a response to Westerners and secularists in the Arab world who claim the reason for the awakening and the return to Islam is financial difficulties. This is untrue.
Miller: You have been described as the "World's Most Wanted Man." There is word that the American government intends to put a price on your head in the millions for your capture. Does it worry you?
Bin Laden: It does not worry us what the Americans think. What worries us is pleasing Allah. The Americans impose themselves on everyone who believes in his religion and his rights. They accuse our children in Palestine of being terrorists. Those children that have no weapons and have not even reached maturity. At the same time, they defend a country with its airplanes and tanks, the state of the Jews, that has a policy to destroy the future of these children.
Miller: You have said, "If the Americans are so brave, they will come and arrest me." Do you think that is something my country will try?
Bin Laden: We have seen in the last decade the decline of the American government and the weakness of the American soldier who is ready to wage cold wars and unprepared to fight long wars. This was proven in Beirut when the Marines fled after two explosions. It also proves they can run in less than 24 hours, and this was repeated in Somalia. We are ready for all occasions. We rely on Allah.
Fatwa against Americans
Miller: You have issued a fatwa [decree] calling on all Muslims to kill Americans where they can, when they can. Is that directed at all Americans, just American military, just Americans in Saudi Arabia?
Bin Laden: Allah ordered us in this religion to purify Muslim land of all nonbelievers. We must use such punishment to keep your evil away from Muslims, Muslim children and women. American history does not distinguish between civilians and military, and not even women and children. [Americans] are the ones who used the bombs against Nagasaki. Can these bombs distinguish between infants and military? America does not have a religion that will prevent it from destroying all people.
We believe that the biggest thieves in the world and the terrorists are the Americans. The only way for us to fend off these assaults is to use similar means.
We do not differentiate between those dressed in military uniforms and civilians; they are all targets in this fatwa. Especially since American officials were released after the Khobar bombing, asking all American civilians to contact the security department in the embassy with information on Muslims and activists. The fatwa includes all that share or take part in killing of Muslims, assaulting holy places, or those who help the Jews occupy Muslim land.
Desire to destroy the U.S.
Miller: No one expected the mujaheddin to defeat the Russians in Afghanistan. That caused a surprise to everyone. What do you see as the future for the American involvement in the Middle East and taking on groups like yours?
Bin Laden: We are sure of Allah's victory and our victory against the Americans and the Jews as promised by the prophet, peace be upon him: "Judgment day shall not come until the Muslims fight the Jews, whereas the Jews will hide behind trees and stones, and the tree and the stone will speak and say 'Muslim, behind me a Jew--come and kill him,' except for the al-Ghargad tree, which is a Jewish plant."
We predict a black day for America and the end of the United States as United States, and [the United States] will be separate states and will retreat from our land and collect the bodies of its sons back to America. Allah willing.
His next targets
Miller: Describe the situation when your men took on the Americans in Somalia? Were you there?
Bin Laden: After Allah honored us with victory in Afghanistan, and justice prevailed and the killing of those who slaughtered millions of Muslims in the Muslim republics, it cleared from Muslim minds the myth of superpowers. The youth ceased from seeing America as a superpower. After leaving Afghanistan, they headed for Somalia and prepared for a long battle, thinking that the Americans were like the Russians, but they were surprised when the Americans entered with 300,000 troops, and collected more troops from the world--5,000 from Pakistan, 5,000 from India, 5,000 from Bangladesh, 5,000 from Egypt, Senegal and others like Saudi Arabia.
The youth were surprised at the low morale of the American soldiers and realized more than before that the American soldiers are paper tigers. After a few blows, they ran in defeat, and America forgot about all the hoopla and media propaganda after leaving the Gulf War and destroying infrastructure--and destroying baby formula factories, all civilian factories, bridges and dams that help planting food--about being the world leader, and the leader of the new world order. After a few blows, they forgot about this title and left, dragging their corpses and their shameful defeat.
Miller: Many Americans believe that fighting army-to-army like what happened in Afghanistan is heroic for either army, but setting off bombs killing civilians and innocents is terrorism.
Bin Laden: He is using talk that they are not following. After our victory in Afghanistan and defeating the Russians, the world media, led by the American media, started a campaign against us that is still going on today despite the fact that the Russians left in 1989. On the other side, American policy does not admit to differentiating between civilians, military, and child, human or animal. Examples I mentioned before are Nagasaki and Hiroshima, where they tried to eliminate a whole people.
When it comes to Muslims, there is testimony from Westerners and Christians who testified to the death of hundreds of thousands of our children in Iraq. And there is Qana, Sabra and Shattila, Dir Yasin and Bosnia.
The crusaders continued their slaughter of our mothers, sisters and children. America every time makes a decision to support them and prevent weapons from reaching the Muslims, and allow Serbian butchers to slaughter Muslims.
You do not have a religion that prevents you from carrying out these actions, and therefore you do not have the right to object to like treatment. Every action solicits a reaction. It is a punishment that fits the crime. Our religion forbids us to kill innocents--children, women who are not combatants. Women soldiers who place themselves in the battle trenches receive the same treatment as fighting men.
Miller: Do you have a message to the American people?
Bin Laden: The American government, we think, is an agent that represents the Israel inside America. If we look at sensitive departments in the present government, like the Defense Department or the State Department, or sensitive security departments like the CIA and others, we find that Jews have the first word in the American government, which is how they use America to carry out their plans in the world.
The presence of Americans in the Holy Land supports the Jews and gives them a safe back. The American government, in a time where there are millions of Americans living on the street and those living below the standard of living and below the poverty line, we find the American government turning toward helping Israel in occupying our land and building settlements in the Holy Land.
The American government is throwing away the lives of Americans in Saudi Arabia for the interests of the Jews. The Jews are a people who Allah cited in his holy book the Quran as those who attacked prophets with lies and killings, and attacked Mary and accused her of a great sin. They are a people who killed Allah's prophets--would they not kill, rape and steal from humans?
They believe that all humans are created for their use, and found that the Americans are the best-created beings for that use. The American government is driving America to destruction, and those same ones have no doubts about America being a superpower in the next decade.
So, we tell the Americans as a people, and we tell the mothers of soldiers, and American mothers in general, if they value their lives and those of their children, find a nationalistic government that will look after their interests and not the interest of the Jews.
The continuation of the tyranny will bring the fighting to America. This is my message to the American people, to look for a serious government that looks out for their interest and does not attack others, their lands or their honor.
Miller: From history, in 1897, Teddy Roosevelt was a wealthy man who grew up in a privileged situation who fought on the front line, put together his own team not from the army, handpicked his own men and went into battle. You are like the Middle East version of Teddy Roosevelt.
Bin Laden: We are worshippers of Allah, and we carry out our duties. Our duty is to call on all nations to join the fight. Our first duty is being people of this religion and to fight for this religion. Since we grew up, American weapons were on our heads and the heads of our children and mothers, like in Qana and others. The Westerners have been under the impression that we are butchers. They just only need to look at their brother in Eastern Europe, Turkey and Albania to see those who embraced Islam and lived happily with it for centuries. The Western masses have fallen under the effect of Jewish media who do not broadcast on Muslims except that we butcher, and without showing that number of those of us who were butchered is the biggest number. It is our duty to lead people to light.
OMEWHERE INSIDE AFGHANISTAN--Armed Islamic militants led ABC News correspondent John Miller and his crew on foot through the mountains of southern Afghanistan to the secret hideaway of Osama bin Laden.
Link to interview HERE.
I guess they will be threatening us for a long time because I have no intention of converting to islam.
Not really. I've had my voice spoofed well enough to fool a voice recognition unit--and that was in 1990.
Yes. I don't mistake it for a detailed factual presentation of voice recognition technology.
The CIA has a matching system that they compare the percentages of soundwaves with voices compared to intelligence.
Yup. So do a lot of other people--it's commercially available. Word on the street is that the best technology has anywhere from a 15% false positive rate (from a live speaker talking to a microphone directly hooked up to the computer) to a 50% false positive rate for 2nd and 3rd generation tapes.
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