Bin Laden ‘sparked terror attacks of last week’
The Sunday Times has reported that Osama Bin Laden was the mastermind behind the attacks on Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Morocco.
The paper reports that three months ago, Bin Laden singled out the three countries as targets for ‘martyrdom operations’.
And last week Islamic extremists, believed to have links with al-Qaeda carried out multiple suicide attacks against expatriate housing compounds in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, killing 34 people, including eight Americans.
Three days after Monday’s attack, a series of explosions rocked 21 petrol stations in Pakistan.
Then on Friday, 14 terrorists carried five bombs which exploded within a thirty minute period in Casablanca.
Bin Laden was reported as saying: ‘True Muslims should act, incite and mobilise the nation in such great events. in order to break free from the slavery of these tyrannic and apostate regimes, which are enslaved by America.’
‘Among regions ready for liberation are Jordan, Morocco, Nigeria, the country of the two shrines (Saudi Arabia), Yemen and Pakistan.’
This has led to fears that Osama Bin Laden may be alive and well and planning further attacks.
Whilst a normal Bin Laden tape would receive huge scrutiny from Western intelligence, the newspaper reports that the latest example was all but ignored due to intelligence agencies focusing their attention on Iraq.
However, whilst authorities have confirmed that it was possible that the Moroccan attack was caused by al-Qaeda, experts warned that the assaults may have been carried out by independent radicals, noting that the American consulate in the city was not among the targets.
