Bin Laden claims Christmas day attack in new tape
Osama bin Laden purportedly claimed responsibility for the Christmas Day attempted bomb attack against a US plane in a new audio tape aired Sunday on an Al Jazeera television station.
The tape, which has not been independently confirmed to be from Mr. bin Laden, suggests that the leader of Al Qaeda will use such attacks to raise his own profile even if he was not involved in the planning or execution.
Reuters reports that bin Laden not only claimed the Christmas Day attack, but also vowed more attacks against the US.
Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, a Nigerian, has been indicted on six counts by a US grand jury stemming from his alleged attempt to blow up a jetliner as it neared Detroit on Dec. 25. Al Qaeda’s Yemen affiliate, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, previously claimed responsibility for the attack, and Mr. Abdulmutallab told officials after his arrest that he obtained his explosive device and training in Yemen.
The Associated Press reports that the new tape suggests bin Laden wants to appear in control of the global Al Qaeda network, although he is thought by some analysts to be simply a figurehead.
Bin Laden also said that US support for Israel was the reason behind attacks on the US, reports Al Jazeera.
After a bin Laden released a tape in June criticizing President Obama, the Christian Science Monitor reported that Al Qaeda had been put on the defensive, and was losing its status as leader of the resistance to the US and Israel as groups like Hamas and Hezbollah gained prominence. Recordings like the one released Sunday could be an attempt to hold on to that status.
The message from bin Laden is his first since Sept. 25 when he warned Europeans not to support the US-led war in Afghanistan. He released six messages in 2009, reports CNN.
