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Osama bin Laden delivered a new videotaped message in which he told Americans their security does not depend on the president they elect, but on U.S. policy.
The tape was aired on the Arab language network Al-Jazeera Friday, just four days before the U.S. presidential election.
It's the first videotaped message from the al Qaeda leader in nearly three years.
Bin Laden said the message was being delivered directly to the American people, saying the attacks of September 11, 2001 were the result of U.S. foreign policy in Arab lands, specifically referring to Lebanon and the Palestinians.
At one point, he mentioned both President Bush and Democratic candidate Sen. John Kerry.
"Your security is not in the hands of Kerry or Bush or al Qaeda. Your security is in your own hands. Any nation that does not attack us will not be attacked," bin Laden said in the video.
Bush told reporters as he was boarding Air Force One for Columbus, Ohio, "Americans will not be intimidated or influenced by an enemy of our country. I'm sure Senator Kerry agrees with this. ... We are at war with these terrorists, and I am confident we will prevail."
Kerry told reporters in West Palm Beach, Florida: "Let me make it clear; crystal clear -- as Americans, we are absolutely united in our determination to hunt down and destroy Osama bin Laden and the terrorists."
He added: "They are barbarians. And I will stop at absolutely nothing to hunt down, capture or kill the terrorists wherever they are, whatever it takes. Period."
Bin Laden criticizes Bush
Bin Laden sharply criticized President Bush for his behavior on the morning of September 11, 2001, when the president was reading "My Pet Goat" to a group of schoolchildren in Florida at the time he was informed of the attacks.
"It never occurred that the highest leader of the military armed forces would leave 50,000 people to face the horror that they faced all by themselves when they needed him most," bin Laden said.
"He was more interested in listening to the child's story about the goat rather than worry about what was happening to the towers. So, that gave us double the time for us to execute our attacks."
Bin Laden was wearing a gold robe with a white headdress and white cloak. He had a long mostly gray beard, and appeared to be sitting behind a desk, reading from a paper statement, occasionally moving his right hand as he spoke.
Intelligence officials have warned previously about the possibility of al Qaeda trying to attack the United States around the time of next Tuesday's election, similar to the al Qaeda train bombings in Madrid on March 11 before the Spanish presidential election.
"Your security is not in the hands of Kerry or Bush or al Qaeda. Your security is in your own hands. Any nation that does not attack us will not be attacked."
-- Osana bin Laden
A U.S. government official said that based on initial analysis of the new bin Laden tape, "There have not been discussions about raising the nation's security posture or threat level."
The official said that the government is waiting for the intelligence community to further analyze the tape, but on first glance it did not appear to contain any specific threat information. The official said that among things analysts will be looking for are hidden messages.
In the video, bin Laden said he decided to attack the twin towers of the World Trade Center in 1982 after the invasion of Lebanon by Israel.
"In those dark moments, my soul was thinking about lots of things that are hard to describe but they brought a feeling to do something about the aggressors and punish them," he said.
"When I looked at the towers that were destroyed in Lebanon, it occurred to me that we should do the same to them. And the towers in America should have fallen down in order for Americans to feel what we have felt."
He underscored it was U.S. foreign policy that led to the attacks, saying, "Bush has told you that we do not like freedom. Then, why didn't we hit Sweden?"
The statement aired Friday is the first videotaped message from the al Qaeda leader since December 2001.
Since he was last seen speaking on tape, at least seven audiotapes have surfaced on which a voice believed to be bin Laden issued messages. The most recent came in April, when he made references to the train bombings in Madrid the month before.
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The tape was aired on the Arab language network Al-Jazeera Friday, just four days before the U.S. presidential election.
It's the first videotaped message from the al Qaeda leader in nearly three years.
Bin Laden said the message was being delivered directly to the American people, saying the attacks of September 11, 2001 were the result of U.S. foreign policy in Arab lands, specifically referring to Lebanon and the Palestinians.
At one point, he mentioned both President Bush and Democratic candidate Sen. John Kerry.
"Your security is not in the hands of Kerry or Bush or al Qaeda. Your security is in your own hands. Any nation that does not attack us will not be attacked," bin Laden said in the video.
Bush told reporters as he was boarding Air Force One for Columbus, Ohio, "Americans will not be intimidated or influenced by an enemy of our country. I'm sure Senator Kerry agrees with this. ... We are at war with these terrorists, and I am confident we will prevail."
Kerry told reporters in West Palm Beach, Florida: "Let me make it clear; crystal clear -- as Americans, we are absolutely united in our determination to hunt down and destroy Osama bin Laden and the terrorists."
He added: "They are barbarians. And I will stop at absolutely nothing to hunt down, capture or kill the terrorists wherever they are, whatever it takes. Period."
Bin Laden criticizes Bush
Bin Laden sharply criticized President Bush for his behavior on the morning of September 11, 2001, when the president was reading "My Pet Goat" to a group of schoolchildren in Florida at the time he was informed of the attacks.
"It never occurred that the highest leader of the military armed forces would leave 50,000 people to face the horror that they faced all by themselves when they needed him most," bin Laden said.
"He was more interested in listening to the child's story about the goat rather than worry about what was happening to the towers. So, that gave us double the time for us to execute our attacks."
Bin Laden was wearing a gold robe with a white headdress and white cloak. He had a long mostly gray beard, and appeared to be sitting behind a desk, reading from a paper statement, occasionally moving his right hand as he spoke.
Intelligence officials have warned previously about the possibility of al Qaeda trying to attack the United States around the time of next Tuesday's election, similar to the al Qaeda train bombings in Madrid on March 11 before the Spanish presidential election.
"Your security is not in the hands of Kerry or Bush or al Qaeda. Your security is in your own hands. Any nation that does not attack us will not be attacked."
-- Osana bin Laden
A U.S. government official said that based on initial analysis of the new bin Laden tape, "There have not been discussions about raising the nation's security posture or threat level."
The official said that the government is waiting for the intelligence community to further analyze the tape, but on first glance it did not appear to contain any specific threat information. The official said that among things analysts will be looking for are hidden messages.
In the video, bin Laden said he decided to attack the twin towers of the World Trade Center in 1982 after the invasion of Lebanon by Israel.
"In those dark moments, my soul was thinking about lots of things that are hard to describe but they brought a feeling to do something about the aggressors and punish them," he said.
"When I looked at the towers that were destroyed in Lebanon, it occurred to me that we should do the same to them. And the towers in America should have fallen down in order for Americans to feel what we have felt."
He underscored it was U.S. foreign policy that led to the attacks, saying, "Bush has told you that we do not like freedom. Then, why didn't we hit Sweden?"
The statement aired Friday is the first videotaped message from the al Qaeda leader since December 2001.
Since he was last seen speaking on tape, at least seven audiotapes have surfaced on which a voice believed to be bin Laden issued messages. The most recent came in April, when he made references to the train bombings in Madrid the month before.
Any comments?
