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CNN Sunday Morning
Bin Laden Spokesman Says al Qaeda Plans to Strike U.S. Again
Aired June 23, 2002 - 09:15 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: In a recorded statement on Al Jazeera TV, an al Qaeda spokesman is saying Osama bin Laden is alive and well, and he tells Americans to be prepared that more attacks are coming. CNN's senior international correspondent Nic Robertson joins us from Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan to tell us a little bit about the statement and a little bit about the search for Osama bin Laden and the al Qaeda and Taliban leadership. Hello, Nic.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Miles.
Well, perhaps one of the more significant things from that statement by al Qaeda is they say that 98 percent of the al Qaeda leadership is healthy and in good shape. What they don't say is they don't claim that Mohammed Atef, who was Osama bin Laden's chief military chief of staff, they don't say whether he is alive and well, and coalition forces believe that he was killed in bombing November the 16th last year as coalition forces, along with Northern Alliances forces drove the Taliban out of Kabul and out of Kandahar in the south of Afghanistan.
So no claim there and perhaps an indication that Mohammed Atef, Osama bin Laden's military chief is, in fact, dead.
Certainly here in Afghanistan, efforts are still under way to track down al Qaeda members and Taliban here. Just this weekend, within the last 24 hours, British Royal Marine commandos, working with U.S. Special Forces, believe they have one of the most significant hauls of weapons and personnel perhaps for the last few weeks or months in their operations, just close to the border with Pakistan in the east of Afghanistan.
They have arrested about 10 people and have found and taken into their custody a cache of weapons including rockets, including small ammunitions and significantly taking into possession as well, plastic explosives and fuse material detonation cord for those explosives as well.
They say they are not sure at this time whether this is material and men belonging to al Qaeda or Taliban, but they say in recent weeks, recent months, this is one of the more significant finds they've had in their operations -- Miles.
O'BRIEN: Nic, how much credence should we give this audio tape release, given its source and given its means of dissemination?
ROBERTSON: Al Jazeera, the Qatari-based news organization, has been chosen in the past by al Qaeda to release their messages through. Certainly, we have not seen anything of Osama bin Laden verifiably recorded beyond late last year, so perhaps this is really -- perhaps there is no substance in it. It's very difficult to verify.
Certainly from sources inside Pakistan, it is clear that some of the hard-line religious groups inside Pakistan are supporting al Qaeda members logistically and financially inside Pakistan. Perhaps Osama bin Laden and others have been able to slip out, have moved on to other parts of the world -- Miles.
O'BRIEN: CNN's Nic Robertson at the Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan, thank you very much. Keep us posted from there, please.
With reaction to those reported al Qaeda statements, we head now to Washington, where CNN White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux is standing by. Good morning, Suzanne.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles. The administration really is downplaying the significance of this new audio tape claiming that Osama bin Laden, the suspected mastermind of the September 11 attacks, is alive and well.
The administration saying that they are going to reserve judgment until they listen to these tapes, until they determine its authenticity. But really, they don't even know whether or not the spokesperson is credible at all.
Now this is a tape, as my colleague mentioned, that's being played on Al Jazeera Arab television today. There are three claims that the aide Sulaiman Abu Ghaith made, some highlights of those being, and I'm quoting here. He says: "I really want to assure the Muslims that Sheikh Osama bin Laden is in good health." He goes on to say: "The American operation was not able to destroy the organization. The system is still there. Al Qaeda is not a fragile organization."
And then goes on to say: "Our martyrs are ready for operations against American and Jewish targets inside and outside. American should be prepared. It should be ready. We are coming to them where they never expected."
And then Abu Ghaith goes on to say that we can expect to hear from Osama bin Laden himself on television sometime soon. Al Jazeera saying that they think this audio tape was made recently, because there are references to whether or not President Bush knew or had any warnings of the September 11 attacks.
But the administration aides I talked to this morning really downplaying this, saying they'll take a listen to it. They're not even sure if the spokesperson is credible, and they also say this is really no new information, that we have heard this from the White House. We have heard it from the Pentagon, that there are warnings that yes, there will be additional terrorist attacks and that also the whereabouts of Osama bin Laden are unknown -- Miles.
O'BRIEN: Suzanne Malveaux at the White House, and we should underscore that tape we liberally used during that report is file footage from this past fall, has nothing to do with this audio tape which was just released. Thanks very much, Suzanne.
MALVEAUX: Sure.
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