Taliban leader unimpressed with Obama
Photo: AP
Taliban leader takes aim at Obama
US and British offensives in recent months had been a failure, Mullah Omar says
Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Omar issued a statement on Saturday telling people of the West not to listen to US President Barack Obama's justifications of war and vowing to defeat NATO troops like other invaders of history.
In a statement posted in English on a Taliban website, shahamat.org, marking the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan and attributed to the reclusive Taliban leader, Omar said US and British offensives in recent months had been a failure.
"The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan calls on the public of the West not to be deceived by the assertions of Obama, who says the war in Afghanistan, is a war of necessity. The West does not have to wage this war," the statement said.
"The public of the West should also not be deceived by the assertions of the General Secretary of NATO and British prime minister who claim the war in Afghanistan is for the defense of the West. Such deceiving and baseless utterances must not confuse you."
A Taliban spokesman, Qari Yousuf, said the statement was genuine. The precise whereabouts and health status of Omar are not known, as he does not appear in public.
US commanders believe the reclusive Taliban leader has been hiding in Pakistan since he was driven from power in Kabul in 2001 after refusing to turn over al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden after the Sept. 11 attacks.
A press officer for US and NATO-led troops in Afghanistan, Captain Elizabeth Mathias, declined to comment on the statement.
