A warning purportedly by bin Laden

By Bryan Bender, Globe Correspondent, 9/11/2003

WASHINGTON -- In what would be his first appearance in nearly two years, Osama bin Laden and his top deputy warned in newly aired video and audio tapes yesterday of deadlier terrorist attacks and urged Muslims to "bury US troops in Iraq."

The messages, broadcast on the Arab news channel Al-Jazeera, came on the eve of the second anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and praised the Al Qaeda members who carried them out.

If authentic, the tapes could be part of an effort by bin Laden to sow fear as Americans mark today's anniversary and possibly serve as a rallying cry for the weakened global network, US intelligence officials and terrorism specialists said, adding that the release of the video, like that of previous Al Qaeda tapes, might signify that another attack may be imminent.

US and international intelligence officials immediately began poring over the recordings -- the first to depict bin Laden since December 2001 -- to determine their authenticity and where and when they may have been recorded, and for any clues to their possible whereabouts.

In more than an hour of video, two men purported to be bin Laden and Ayman Al-Zawahri are seen hiking through craggy mountain trails. Although they are using walking sticks, they appear to be in good health. An English translation drowns out the voices on the video. The two, who are Al Qaeda's most senior leaders, are believed to be hiding along the barren mountains between Afghanistan and Pakistan.

In separate audio tracks, a voice purported to be bin Laden's praises the Sept. 11 hijackers. The man identified as Zawahri, who specifically mentioned today's anniversary, described the battle between the United States and Al Qaeda up to now as mere "skirmishes," and he predicts more attacks to punish America.

"Whoever wants to be taught about loyalty and honesty should have known them," the Saudi-born bin Laden says of the hijackers. "They were the most honest and bravest."

Carrying a Soviet-made automatic rifle, Zawahri, an Egyptian-born doctor, says that "with the help of God we will cut the arms of anyone that touches us," warning Americans to "prepare yourself for punishment of your crimes."

"On the second anniversary of the raids on New York and Washington we challenge America and its crusade, which is teetering from its wounds in Afghanistan and Iraq," the speaker says. "The real battle has not started yet."

Al-Jazeera said the tapes, which the Arab press last week reported would be released prior to the Sept. 11 anniversary, was shot either in April or May of this year. But the network did not offer any proof authenticating the images or voices.

"A technical analysis will be done on the voice track to see if a determination can be made that it is the voices of bin Laden and Zawahri," said a CIA official who asked not to be identified. "The analysts will see if they can glean any information from clues," such as whether there are hidden messages meant for terrorist operatives around the world.

Bin Laden's last purported message appeared in April, when he exhorted Muslims to rise up against Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and other governments he called "agents of America." CIA officials said that recording appeared to be authentic but could not determine when the audio tape was made.

Bin Laden and Zawahri are believed to be communicating with their followers primarily through couriers and have avoided making cellular or satellite calls that could be intercepted by US officials, who have netted other top Al Qaeda lieutenants that way.

One senior US official, however, said that there has been no noticeable upswing in so-called intelligence "chatter" in recent weeks about a potential attack, and there were no plans to raise the national terrorist threat level.

Intelligence officials said one point of interest on the video is bin Laden's left arm, believed to have been injured in the December 2001 battle of Tora Bora in Afghanistan, where officials say he narrowly escaped US and allied forces. The footage shows bin Laden holding his arm close to his chest and immobile, but later also shows him sitting with the arm draped over his leg and holding on to the walking stick.

The video images appeared to have been shot on the same day because the light seems constant throughout, officials said. Wildflowers seen in the video may provide a clue that it was shot in early summer and not during later, harsher months.

Intelligence officials and specialists said their preliminary view is that the tapes are primarily intended as psychological weapons aimed at jittery Americans on the second anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. "I don't know when it was made, but as we get ready for this anniversary it seems they are putting out the message that `we're thinking of that, we're still here,' " said a US intelligence official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

"They know we're watching," said John Parachini, a terrorism expert at the Rand Corporation in Washington. "And they are watching us very carefully. They are very intently watching how we react."

Such tapes have also long been used by Al Qaeda to reassure followers that, despite the US-led military campaign still being carried out in Afghanistan, the terror network remains strong.

The messages also appear to be part of an effort to encourage stronger Muslim resistance to the US coalition in Iraq.

"We salute the mujahedeen brothers in Iraq and . . . ask Allah to bless their sacrifices and valor in fighting the crusaders," the Zawahri voice said. "We tell you that Allah is with you and the [Islamic] nation supports you. Bury them in the Iraqi graveyard." The Bush administration says that scores of radical Muslims sympathetic to Al Qaeda are flocking to Iraq to fight a holy war against the United States and its allies, and President Bush has called Iraq the "central front" in the war on terrorism.