Bin Laden urges insurgents to unite

[GraceAbounds]

Bin Laden urges insurgents to unite

Insurgents should admit ‘mistakes,’ al-Qaida leader purportedly says

NBC News and news services
Updated: 4:19 p.m. CT Oct 22, 2007

CAIRO, Egypt - Osama bin Laden called for Iraqi insurgents to unite and avoid divisive "extremism," speaking in an audiotape aired Monday and apparently intended to win over Sunnis opposed to al-Qaida's branch in Iraq.

In the audiotape broadcast on Al-Jazeera television, bin Laden said insurgents should admit "mistakes" and that he even advises himself not to be extreme in his leadership.

The tape appeared to be in response to moves by some Sunni Arab tribes in Iraq that have joined U.S. troops in fighting al-Qaida members, as well as other Sunni insurgent groups that — while still attacking Americans — have formed coalitions opposed to al-Qaida.

"Some of you have been lax in one duty, which is to unite your ranks," bin Laden said in the audiotape. "Beware of division ... Muslims are waiting for you to gather under a single banner to champion righteousness. Be keen to oblige with this duty."

"I advise myself, Muslims in general and brothers in al-Qaida everywhere to avoid extremism among men and groups," he said, saying leaders should not build themselves up as the sole authority, and that instead mujahedeen should follow "what God and his prophet have said."

Bin Laden used the Arabic word "ta'assub," which in traditional Islamic thought means extremism in allegiance or adherence to a group, to a degree that excludes others — apparently advising flexibility to overcome divisions.

"Everybody can make a mistake, but the best of them are those who admit their mistakes," he said. "Mistakes have been made during holy wars but mujahedeen have to correct their mistakes."

U.S. official: Message is 'nothing new'
A senior U.S. intelligence official told NBC News that the general theme of the audio message — unification of insurgent forces in Iraq — was "nothing new" for bin Laden or his deputy, Ayman al Zawahiri. They have called in the past for Sunni groups to stop attacking Shiites and instead focus on the United States.

U.S. counterterrorism authorities were studying the content and authenticity of the audiotape. However, officials often note that no one has faked a bin Laden recording in the past.

Al-Jazeera did not say how it obtained the tape.

IntelCenter, a a U.S. group that monitors militant messages, said it was bin Laden's third public statement this year, with the previous two on Sept. 8 and Sept. 20.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
URL: Bin Laden urges insurgents to unite - International Terrorism - MSNBC.com

 

[Peter Parka]

I still wouldn't be very surprised if he was already dead.:confused

 

[All Else Failed]

Wasn't there a recent video of him where there were hints in it that proved it to be rather recent? I could be wrong.

 

[GraceAbounds]

This is the third tape by him this year. The other two were proved legit so they say.

 

[All Else Failed]

I always admired his beard. You have to hand it to him, its a nice beard.

 

[Peter Parka]

Men with beards should be shot on sight! (unless the're Jesus!):24:

 

[All Else Failed]

Men with beards should be shot on sight! (unless the're Jesus!):24:

Even if you shot at Jesus, he's already too full of holes to get hurt. :24:


Oh I'm a bastard.

 

[GraceAbounds]

I always admired his beard. You have to hand it to him, its a nice beard.

LOL!

Bin Laden better hidden in city than a cave, says intelligence expert

MARK TREVELYAN

OSAMA bin Laden could hide more easily in a city than in a remote tribal region, a former Pakistani intelligence chief said yesterday, challenging the notion that the al-Qaeda leader is holed up in a mountain cave.
Lieutenant-General Asad Durrani, former head of the powerful inter-services intelligence agency, said news of outsiders' presence travels fast in the tribal areas.
"In the countryside or in tribal areas ... it's difficult to hide yourself because there people live ... and operate in a manner in which finding out about unusual presence is very important," Lt-Gen Durrani said.
"I am not sure over a period of four, five or six years that it would be possible even for the tribesmen to keep his presence under wraps."

More crap on the bearded man.

 

[Peter Parka]

Hey! Ghandi agreed with Jesus so its good enough for me! Its yet to be proved that either agreed with the Bible though and your joke was hysterical!:24:

 

[All Else Failed]

I was watching a documentary about Ghandi once, turns out he pretty much hated blacks.

 

[Peter Parka]

I was watching a documentary about Ghandi once, turns out he pretty much hated blacks.

Sounds like the Jews then! Maybe he and Jesus did have something in common!

 

[alleycat]

Violence in Iraq drops sharply: Ministry | U.S. | Reuters

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Violence in Iraq has dropped by 70 percent since the end of June, when U.S. forces completed their build-up of 30,000 extra troops to stabilize the war-torn country, the Interior Ministry said on Monday.

The ministry released the new figures as bomb blasts in Baghdad and the northern city of Mosul killed five people and six gunmen died in clashes with police in the holy Shi'ite city of Kerbala south of the Iraqi capital.

Washington began dispatching reinforcements to Iraq in February to try to buy Iraq's feuding political leaders time to reach a political accommodation to end violence between majority Shi'ites and minority Sunni Arabs that has killed tens of thousands and forced millions from their homes.

While the leaders have failed to agree on key laws aimed at reconciling the country's warring sects, the troop buildup has succeeded in quelling violence.

Under the plan, U.S. troops left their large bases and set up combat outposts in neighborhoods while launching a series of summer offensives against Sunni Islamist al Qaeda, other Sunni Arab militants and Shi'ite militias in the Baghdad beltway.

Interior Ministry spokesman Major-General Abdul-Karim Khalaf told reporters that there had been a 70 percent decrease in violence countrywide in the three months from July to September over the previous quarter.

GRADUAL IMPROVEMENT

In Baghdad, considered the epicenter of the violence because of its mix of Shi'ites and Sunni Arabs, car bombs had decreased by 67 percent and roadside bombs by 40 percent, he said. There had also been a 28 percent decline in the number of bodies found dumped in the capital's streets.

In Anbar, a former insurgent hotbed where Sunni Arab tribes have joined U.S. forces against al Qaeda, there has been an 82 percent drop in violent deaths.

"These figures show a gradual improvement in controlling the security situation," Khalaf said.

However, in the northern province of Nineveh, where many al Qaeda and other Sunni Arab militants fled to escape the crackdown in Baghdad and surrounding region, there had been a 129 percent rise in car bombings and a corresponding 114 percent increase in the number of people killed in violence.

While the figures confirm U.S. data showing a positive trend in combating al Qaeda bombers, there is growing instability in southern Iraq, where rival Shi'ite factions are fighting for political dominance.

Police said six gunmen were killed in police raids in Kerbala, 110 km (70 miles) southwest of Baghdad.

Some 50 people were killed in Kerbala in August in fierce clashes between fighters loyal to Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr and local police, who are seen as aligned to the rival Supreme Iraqi Islamic Council's armed wing, the Badr Organization.

After the clashes, Sadr said he was imposing a six-month freeze on the activities of the Mehdi Army, increasingly seen as beyond his control, so that he could reorganize it.

In Baghdad, three roadside bombs killed four people, including three policemen, while in Mosul one policeman was killed when a blast hit a police patrol.