Osama bin Laden (Archive photo)
Photo: AFP
Bin Laden vows to fight Israel on 60th anniversary
'We will continue, God permitting, the fight against the Israelis and their allies,' al-Qaeda leader says in new audio message, 'will not give up a single inch of Palestine as long as there is one true Muslim on earth'
Osama bin Laden vowed in an audio tape marking Israel's 60th anniversary celebrations to continue the fight against the Jewish state and its allies and not give up an inch of Palestinian land.
Al-Qaeda Leader
International Institute for Counter Terrorism experts analyze new bin Laden tape, rule al-Qaeda leader's threats most likely idle, made for political gain
"We will continue, God permitting, the fight against the Israelis and their allies ... And will not give up a single inch of Palestine as long as there is one true Muslim on earth," the al Qaeda leader said in the tape posted on an Islamist website on Friday.
Bin Laden said the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was at the heart of the Muslim battle with the West and an inspiration to the 19 bombers who carried out the Sept. 11 attacks on US cities in 2001.
Mocks peace efforts
Bin Laden said Israel's anniversary celebrations showed not only that the Jewish state was 60-years-old but also that it did not exist 60 years ago and was established on land violently seized from the Palestinians.
The Saudi-born militant also railed against the Western media which he said had over the years painted Israelis as victims and the Palestinians who had been displaced from their land as terrorists.
Bin Laden mocked peace efforts he said had been going on for 60 years but failed to establish a Palestinian state and said the deployment of an international force in southern Lebanon proved the West backed and protected Israel.
The speech is addressed to "Western peoples" and entitled "The Causes of Conflict on the 60th Anniversary of the State of Israeli Occupation."
The authenticity of the tape could not immediately be verified but the voice sounded like Bin Laden.
