Osama bin Laden: Is It Him? Almost Certainly By: ROBERT FISK

[kpete]

Osama bin Laden: Is It Him? Almost Certainly.
By Robert Fisk
The Independent UK

Friday 20 January 2006

So why only on audio? Why no video tape? Is he sick? Yes, say the usual American "intelligence sources". It's the same old story: Osama bin Laden talks to us from the mouth of a cave, from within a cave, from a basement perhaps, from a tape almost certainly recorded down a telephone line from far away. Yesterday's message, broadcast as ever by al-Jazeera television, was a reminder that security - not sickness - decides his method of communication.

We invaded Afghanistan to find Bin Laden and we fight and die in Iraq to kill his supporters - yet still he eludes us, still he threatens us, still he taunts us.

How much longer can this nonsense go on? President Jacques Chirac warns that France - of all countries - might use nuclear weapons, if attacked. On whom, I wonder? America blows Pakistani children to pieces and claims it has killed five wanted men, including a bomb-maker. But there's absolutely no evidence. Bin Laden says that America will be attacked again unless it accepts a truce in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Weren't we supposed to be winning the "war on terror"? Oh no, the "experts" tell us, Bin Laden and al-Qa'ida are losing, that's why they want a truce. Some hope.

It's a game. Bin Laden has no intention of calling an end to his own war and nor has George Bush and nor has Tony Blair. The Bin Laden offer, almost certainly, is intended to be rejected. He wants Bush and Blair to refuse it. Then, after the next attack, will come the next audio tape. See what happens when you reject our ceasefire? We warned you. And we'll ask: is it him? So why no video tape? Never before in history have so many wanted men sent pictures and messages and video tapes out of the dark.

http://news.independent.co.uk/world/fisk/article339819.ece

[Village Idiot]

1. I can't believe it.

Why have other UbL experts said that it is certainly NOT him, then? Why no Koran snippets? Why nothing poetic? Why ONLY audio? Remember the last videotape that was a FRAUD?

This is only more of the same. Not that it matters...if he IS still alive, it's pretty safe to say he is still a US intel asset.

[Wind Dancer]

2. Interesting!

Fisk is one of the few independent journalists that met with OBL in the 90's. He's covered numerous wars and is horrified by the crimes we are committing in Iraq, I've always respected his honest journalism.

There is quite a bit of info on him through Democracy Now and his website.

http://www.robert-fisk.com/

http://www.democracynow.org/search.pl?query=robert+fisk

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