Soon… the blessed invasion of Manhattan ... "Special Gift" for 9/11

[Jolie Rouge]

Soon… the blessed invasion of Manhattan
September 06, 2007

I promised myself that I wouldn't give my 'friend' Inshallahshaheed from the Wordpress hosted al Qaeda support website The Ignored Puzzle of Knowledge any more press than he deserves http://inshallahshaheed.wordpress.com/ Inshallahshaheed is at the center of a network of online jihadis that include convicted terrorist Daniel Joseph Maldonado, aka Daniel al Jughaifi. Wordpress continues to host the convicted terrorist's website.

After complaining to Wordpress on dozens and dozens of occasions about Inshallahshaheed I pretty much gave up on getting them to play ball. But I also knew that Inshallahshaheed was being investigated, not by the FBI, but by other interested parties. So I stopped writing about that particular website and even discouraged others (like Weasel Zip http://www.weaselzippers.net/blog/ ) from writing about it. Except, of course, in passing reference.

Earlier today, though, I noted that Rabbi Abraham Cooper mentioned the website at a Simon Wiesenthal Center sponsored event. http://www.wiesenthal.com/site/apps/nl/content.asp?c=fwLYKnN8LzH&b=312458&content_id={A9A77EE0-AFB3-4035-9292-6432AA16DC2D}&notoc=1

It now seems that the FBI are taking the website seriously. Finally.

Howie sends this Fox News report: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,295943,00.html

DEVELOPING STORY : Federal counterterrorism officials are analyzing a posting on an Islamic forum Web site that warns of "a special gift" to be given on the sixth anniversary of Sept. 11, FOX News has learned.

The warning was posted Sept. 2 on a site frequented by radical groups and said in part that "there will be a special gift coming on the day of the blessed invasion of Manhattan."

Federal officials told FOX News they are trying to determine if it might be a specific warning or just part of broad chatter that has been heard during the last few months.

Postings talking about "gifts" have been seen before in the days leading up to the anniversary of Sept. 11.

I can reveal that the website of interest is that of Inshallahshaheed's The Ignored Puzzle of Knowledge'. The particular post in question is simply a preview of an audio set to be released on Sept. 11.

The post says:

Soon …. Soon … Soon … Soon… the blessed invasion of Manhattan

September 2, 2007

Posted by inshallahshaheed in United States of Losers, Jihad, America

بســــم الله الرحمن الرحــــيم [In the name of God, the Merciful]


السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاتة

اخوانــــي الافاضــل

هذاالمقطع الصوتي سيكون باذن الله في احد اصدارتنا بمناسبة ذكرى غزوة منهاتن

ودمتم برعاية الله

[There will be a special gift coming on the day of the blessed invasion of Manhattan…]

[Below is an audio preview]

http://ia341203.us.archive.org/1/items/vvdfg/NEW.rm

The audio wasn't actually originally posted by inshallahshaheed, rather, he found it an an Islamist forum and then simply reposted it with commentary at his own blog. I've backed up the post, since I have a feeling it will be gone soon.

By "soon" the post simply means that the complete audio will be released, not that Manhattan will be invaded soon. The rumors are that this audio is of Osama bin Laden. I have not yet listened to it.

If the website goes down, I'll put up the archive I made.

UPDATE: Bingo, the blog is down. Yet, I have the cache of the post. View it here http://mypetjawa.mu.nu/archives/soon_invasion-of-manhattan.htm (minus the images). And a screenshot below.

Update within an update: Tim from Opinion Bug ( http://www.opinionbug.com ) finds the Google cache. http://72.14.209.104/search?q=cache:http://inshallahshaheed.wordpress.com/2007/09/02/soon-soon-soon-soon-the-blessed-invasion-of-manhattan/ Nice work Tim. Not included in the Google cached version are some of the comments, including a conversation between inshallahshaheed and a 9/11 Truther. Inshallahshaheed convincingly argues that since al Qaeda produced a video showing the "19 martyrs" and admitted to being behind the attack then of course they were behind 9/11, inshallah. See, trutherism is offensive even to jihadis.

UPDATE II: I'm listening to the audio now. Starts out with sirens, gunshots, and panicked people screaming. There is a voice over in Arabic. Very menacing. Not at all like the usual. There's shouting and screaming, and gunshots. Very different than most of these types of audios which are usually calm sermons with nasheeds (music) in the background.

No bin Laden audio, but towards the end of the audio is a nasheed praising Osama bin Laden. Then gunshots. Then it ends. Scary.

Sounds threatening to me. And considering that I monitor a lot of this stuff, if I even think its scary, then I think that's saying something. It may not be a direct specific threat about an impending attack, but it is a general threat.

And it reminds us of exactly who it is we're fighting.


http://mypetjawa.mu.nu/archives/189289.php



And it reminds us of exactly who it is we're fighting

American commanders cite al-Qaida's severe brand of Islam, which is so extreme that in Baqouba, al-Qaida has warned street vendors not to place tomatoes beside cucumbers because the vegetables are different genders, Col. David Sutherland said.

http://fallbackbelmont.blogspot.com/2007/04/deliver-us-from-evil.html

[Jolie Rouge]

Osama gets a makeover



Groups: Bin Laden plans video on 9/11
By LEE KEATH, Associated Press Writer
42 minutes ago

CAIRO, Egypt - Osama bin Laden will release a new video in the coming days ahead of the sixth anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks in what would be the first new images of the terror mastermind in nearly three years, al-Qaida's media arm announced Thursday.

The White House said any new video from bin Laden would serve to highlight threats the West faces. Analysts noted that al-Qaida tends to mark the Sept. 11 anniversary with a slew of messages, and the Department of Homeland Security said it had no credible information warning of an imminent threat to the United States.

Still, bin Laden's appearance would be significant. The al-Qaida leader has not appeared in new video footage since October 2004, and he has not put out a new audiotape in more than a year, his longest period without a message.

One difference in his appearance was immediately obvious. The announcement had a still photo from the coming video, showing bin Laden addressing the camera, his beard fully black. In his past videos, bin Laden's beard was almost entirely gray with dark streaks.

Bin Laden's beard appears to have been dyed, a popular practice among Arab leaders, said Rita Katz, director of the SITE Institute, a Washington-based group that monitors terror messages.

"I think it works for their (al-Qaida's) benefit that he looks young, he looks healthy," Katz said.

The announcement and photo appeared in a banner advertisement on an Islamic militant Web site where al-Qaida's media arm, Al-Sahab, frequently posts messages.

"Soon, God willing, a videotape from the lion sheik Osama bin Laden, God preserve him," the advertisement read, signed by Al-Sahab. Such announcements are usually put out one to three days before the video is posted on the Web.

IntelCenter, which monitors Islamic Web sites and analyzes terror threats, said the video was expected within the next 72 hours, before the sixth anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 suicide hijacker attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

The anniversary has always been a major media event for al-Qaida — a chance for it to drum up support among extremists, tout itself as the leading militant group and show off its continued survival.

"They've always gone out of their way to commemorate it," said Ben Venzke, chief executive officer of IntelCenter, which is based in Alexandria, Va. "Historically the anniversary of 9-11 has never been drawn to attacks. It's drawn to video releases."

But the fact that bin Laden is delivering the message is significant, he said. Whether the message will indicate a potential attack will depend on what bin Laden says.

The White House said that any new video message from bin Laden would only underscore the threat the United States and other nations face from extremists.

"Six years after 9/11, the arrests in Germany and Denmark this week and the battles we fight against al-Qaida in Iraq, Afghanistan, southeast Asia and around the world remind us of the continuing threat we face from extremists and why we must continue to take the fight to them wherever they are," said Gordon Johndroe, a spokesman for the National Security Council at the White House.

Homeland Security spokesman Russ Knocke said he could not confirm the existence of a tape, "and there is no credible information at this time warning of an imminent threat to the homeland." But he said increased activity overseas and recent arrests of militants in Germany reinforce the department's assessment that the country is currently in a period of increased risk.

If bin Laden does appear in new footage, it would be the first images of him since an Oct. 29, 2004 videotape, just before the U.S. presidential elections. In that appearance three years ago, he said America could avoid another 9-11 style attack if it stopped threatening Muslims.

The new video would also end the longest period bin Laden has gone without releasing a message. His last audiotape was on July 1, 2006, in which he welcomed new leader of al-Qaida in Iraq succeeding the slain Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.

Bin Laden went silent for a similar long stretch before — from Dec. 28, 2004 to Jan. 19, 2006. That absence sparked widespread speculation he was ill, wounded or possibly dead.

There has been little such speculation since then. U.S. officials have repeatedly said over the past year they believe the al-Qaida leader is alive. He is thought to be hiding in the tribal regions of western Pakistan near the border with Afghanistan.

During bin Laden's silence, his deputy Egyptian-born Ayman al-Zawahri has been frequently issuing videos and audiotapes.

Al-Zawahri appeared in a 2006 video marking the 9-11 anniversary. An anniversary video in 2003 showed footage of bin Laden and al-Zawahri walking through mountain paths, with voice-over messages from both leaders.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070907/ap_on_re_mi_ea/bin_laden_video;_ylt=AnlvJcLic__zNVOphs5oZZms0NUE




Video due within hours?
September 6, 2007 06:00 PM

Reports are buzzing that the video is coming tonight. http://hotair.com/archives/2007/09/06/site-institute-new-bin-laden-video-coming-on-911/

***

The SITE website is down at the moment, but they’ve got the scoop on the alleged bin Laden video to be released in the next 72 hours: http://www.siteinstitute.org/

http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8RG7FRG0&show_article=1


Terror mastermind Osama bin Laden plans a new video addressing the American people regarding the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, terror monitoring groups said Thursday.

SITE Intelligence Group said an Internet announcement of the plan included a photo of the al-Qaida leader from the upcoming video—his beard, which in previous messages had been streaked with gray, was entirely dark.

Wonder if he got Botox, too?


Rita Katz, director of the Washington-based SITE Institute, said bin Laden’s beard appeared to have been dyed, which she said is a popular practice in the Middle East.

“I think it works for their benefit that he looks young, he looks healthy,” Katz said of the new image.


Allah’s got the pre-Grecian formula compare and contrast; he smells “special gift.”

http://hotair.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/2004.jpg

http://hotair.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/2004.jpg


http://hotair.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/osama.jpg

http://hotair.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/osama.jpg


Hard to tell from only one frame, obviously, but it’s odd that the backdrop and Bin Laden’s clothing appear identical in both images above. Maybe it means nothing, maybe it means that the videos were in fact shot roughly contemporaneously, or maybe it means he’s so isolated (or ill?) that not only isn’t he moving around but that even new clothing, if not hair dye, is scarce.


Rusty at the Jawa Report muses: “Look at the two pics AllahP has up. Isn’t it odd that bin Laden is wearing the same outfit? What could that mean?”
http://mypetjawa.mu.nu/archives/189290.php

More from Rusty:


Prediction 1: Any “new” video of Osama will be him talking in generalities, conveniently wearing same clothes as previous videos, only everything looks a bit darker in it. What, you don’t think al Qaeda editor at large Adam Gadahn doesn’t know how to use video editing tools, which include simple color and tone “fixes”?

Prediction 2: Anything “new” that could possible serve as “proof of life” will actually be audio overlaid on to static photos of bin Laden.

[Jolie Rouge]

September 6, 2007
The banality of evil:
Osama tanned, rested, ready, and sporting a boss dye job

The SITE Institute announced, and then pulled, notice that a new Osama video was in the offing -- so that video may or may not be forthcoming.

But Hot Air got a photo from it before it was pulled, featuring a very shahhhp Osama with beard trimmed and hair dyed so black that it makes him look as if he's ready to hit the gaming tables at Caesar's Palace.

What? Why not henna dye, in imitation of the Prophet? Why, black dye is -- it's bid'a! (That is, innovation, which is haram -- forbidden.)

http://www.jihadwatch.org/archives/018066.php

[Jolie Rouge]

Thursday, September 06, 2007


Post-9/11 Hubris

By Victor Davis Hanson


The war@home.

Another anniversary of 9/11 is near. It’s been nearly six long years since a catastrophic attack on our shores, and we’ve understandably turned to infighting and second-guessing — about everything from Guantanamo to wiretaps.

But this six-year calm, unfortunately, has allowed some Americans to believe that “our war on terror” remedy is worse than the original Islamic terrorist disease.

We see this self-recrimination reflected in our current Hollywood fare, which dwells on the evil of American interventions overseas, largely ignoring the courage of our soldiers or the atrocities committed by jihadists. Our tell-all bestsellers, endless lawsuits and congressional investigations have deflected our 9/11-era furor away from the terrorists to ourselves. All this tail-chasing comes only with the illusory thinking that the present lull is the same as perpetual peace. Have we forgotten that experts still insist that another strike will come, carried out by those already here or shortly to enter the United States?

Look back at jihadist near-misses in this country since 9/11 — along with a disturbing recent Pew poll that found one in four younger Muslim Americans approve, at least in certain circumstances, of suicide bombing to “defend Islam” — and the dire predictions seem plausible.

Recall the jihadists arrested in Albany and near Buffalo, N.Y., or the recently uncovered plot to attack Fort Dix in New Jersey. Past foiled targets included the Sears Tower in Chicago, the Brooklyn Bridge, JFK Airport in New York and the New York Stock Exchange.Some angry loners — mouthing jihadist propaganda or anti-American slogans — simply act on their own to try to kill Americans.

Iranian-American college student Mohammed Reza Taheri-azar hit several University of North Carolina classmates with his car in March 2006.

Last summer, Omeed Aziz Popal was arrested for a hit-and-run rampage in San Francisco.

And Naveed Afzal Haq is charged with shooting several women last summer at a Jewish center in Seattle.

Recall also the American residents and citizens with direct connections to al Qaeda’s terrorism network.American Jose Padilla (a.k.a. Abdullah al-Muhajir) was just convicted by a jury of terrorist conspiracy.

Khalid Abu-al-Dahab, a key al Qaeda recruiter, operated out of California’s Silicon Valley. “Sheik” Omar Abdel Rahman advised Egyptian jihadists from his American jail cell — after his conviction for helping to plan the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.

U.S. visitor and asylum-seeker Ramzi Yousef was convicted of the same crime. His partner, the indicted American citizen Abdul Rahman Yasin, fled to prewar Iraq.

Another American, Adam Gadahn, regularly narrates al Qaeda communiques.

Khalid Sheik Mohammed — mastermind of the 9/11 mass murder and the Daniel Pearl decapitation — studied in North Carolina for a number of years.
Egyptian-American and U.S. Army veteran Ali Mohamed helped plan the destruction of American embassies in East Africa.

The convicted “20th-hijacker” Zacarias Moussaoui attended flight school in Oklahoma.

Two things seem clear here.

One: There have been, and are now, plenty of Islamic terrorists and their helpers in the United States.

And two: We are dangerously shortsighted about the ongoing threat they pose.

Meanwhile, Islamic-American organizations and sympathetic civil-liberties associations file lawsuits about supposed American security excesses and illiberal vigilance.

Last fall, for example, several imams were taken off a flight from Minneapolis when the group’s erratic behavior scared fellow passengers. After the incident, one of the so-called “flying imams,” Arizonan Omar Shahin, called for boycotts of the involved airline and legislation to stop supposed anti-Muslim profiling. But the brazen Shahin, it turns out, is more than just a bullied Islamic scholar; he’s also helped raise funds for an organization that the U.S. government has tied to Hamas.

Our experts are too often in denial or disarray. Former White House counterterrorism adviser Richard A. Clark, former CIA operative Michael Scheuer and former CIA director George Tenet now make widely publicized strident attacks on ongoing efforts to stop terrorists and level charges against others — and each other. They rarely talk with any humility, much less apprise us of what we can learn from their own failures to stop the 9/11 jihadists during their long tenures.

In short, six years of quiet at home since 9/11 have fooled some into thinking that terrorists pose little danger here — or that we may be doing far too much rather than too little to stop such killers. No matter that this past week a jihadist plot to destroy U.S. facilities in Germany was thwarted. Others make the mistake of endlessly refighting the past six years — who let al Qaeda grow?; who “lost” Osama bin Laden?; who fouled up postwar Iraq? — instead of concentrating on the storm ahead.

Before 2001, the excuse for American complacence and in-fighting was naivete. But what will be the reason for the next successful strike against us by the jihadists?

More naivete — or is it simple hubris?


http://jillosophy.blogspot.com/




The Crackerjack Box Jihad

Fox News reports that "Federal counterterrorism officials are analyzing a posting on an Islamic forum Web site that warns of 'a special gift' to be given on the sixth anniversary of Sept 11 ... The warning was posted Sept. 2 on a site frequented by radical groups". This is in connection with Osama Bin Laden's reported plan to release a new video to the American people on the occasion of the anniversary of the collapse of the Twin Towers. The Prairie Pundit says Bin Laden's new video probably means Trouble for Truthers. What does Bin Laden have to do with 9/11 anyway? Unless that "Special Gift" is an exclusive, one-time only offer for a special Care Bear toy redeemable at your neighborhood supermarket. But somehow, that's not Bin Laden's style.

http://fallbackbelmont.blogspot.com/2007/09/crackerjack-box-jihad.html

[Jolie Rouge]

Al-Qaida Readies New Bin Laden Video - Islamist Website

http://www.emergencyemail.org/newsemergency/anmviewer.asp?a=243&z=1

.S.-based monitoring groups say the al-Qaida terrorist network intends to release a new video recording of Osama bin Laden on or before next week's sixth anniversary of the September 11 attacks on the United States.
No photos or video of Bin Laden have been seen since late 2004, and the last audio message attributed to the fugitive terrorist leader was heard more than a year ago.

Two private monitoring organizations say an announcement, in the name of al-Qaida's media-production arm, al-Sahab, seen on an Islamist website this week indicates the new al-Qaida video is about to be released.

A photograph said to be a recent portrait of bin Laden accompanied the announcement.

The United States is offering a $25-million reward for bin Laden, but he has eluded capture since the 2001 attacks on New York and Washington. President Bush says the U.S. will find Osama bin Laden and bring him to justice, no matter how long it takes.

[Jolie Rouge]

Bin Laden urges Americans to convert
By LEE KEATH, Associated Press Writer
15 minutes ago

CAIRO, Egypt - Osama bin Laden appeared for the first time in three years in a video Friday released ahead of the sixth anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, telling Americans they should convert to Islam if they want the war in Iraq to end.

The 30-minute video was obtained by the SITE Institute, a Washington-based group that monitors terror messages. American officials said the U.S. government had obtained a copy earlier and intelligence agencies were studying the video to determine whether it was authentic.

In the video, which was broadcast to the Arab world by Al-Jazeera television, bin Laden sits as he talks, wearing a white robe and turban and beige cloak seated behind a table while reading an address to the American people from papers in front of him.

His trimmed beard is shorter than in his last video, in 2004, and is fully black — apparently dyed, since in past videos it was mostly gray. He speaks softly, as he usually does, and has dark bags under his eyes but appears healthy.

The footage gives a rare look at the al-Qaida leader, who has likely avoided appearing in videos as a security measure. His emergence comes at a time when terrorism experts believe his terror network is regrouping in the lawless Pakistan-Afghanistan border region.

Bin Laden makes no overt threats and does not directly call for attacks, according to the transcript, which was first posted on ABC's Web site.

Instead, he addresses Americans, lecturing them on the failures of their leaders to stop the war in Iraq despite growing public opposition in the U.S.

"There are two solutions to stopping it. One is from our side, and it is to escalate the fighting and killing against you. This is our duty, and our brothers are carrying it out," bin Laden said.

"The second solution is from your side," he said. "I invite you to embrace Islam."

"It will also achieve your desire to stop the war as a consequence, because as soon as the warmongering owners of the major corporations realize that you have lost confidence in your democratic system and have begun to look for an alternative, and this alternative is Islam, they will run after you to please you and achieve what you want to steer you away from Islam," he said.

He derides President Bush, saying the American leader is backing Shiites against Sunnis in Iraq. But, bin Laden said, events in Iraq have gotten "out of control" and Bush is "like the one who plows and sows the sea: He harvests nothing but failure."

Bin Laden said the prestige of mujahedeen — Islamic holy warriors — has "grown globally" while America has been "bled dry economically."

The video appeared to have been recently made, since bin Laden refers to the Democratic Party's congressional victory in last fall's election and to French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who was elected in May.

The transcript also praises the American political activist and author Noam Chomsky, mentions global warming and refers to the Aug. 6 anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima during World War II.

Al-Qaida annually uses the anniversary of the Sept. 11 suicide attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon as a propaganda opportunity, issuing videotapes to rally supporters and mock the United States.

But the appearance of bin Laden this year makes a bigger splash. The al-Qaida leader had not appeared in new video footage since October 2004, and he had not put out an audiotape in more than a year, his longest period without a message.

Seth Jones, a terrorism expert at the RAND think tank, said that while the anniversary gives the pretext for the tape, it also comes at a time when the main al-Qaida leadership has managed to regroup.

"There clearly has been a resurgence of core al-Qaida in the tribal areas of Pakistan" along the frontier with Afghanistan since 2005, Jones said.

He said sympathy in that region for the Taliban has made it "more conducive to militant Sunni groups, including al-Qaida."

"It's really created a sanctuary," Jones said.

Rita Katz, director of the SITE Institute, said she believes "strongly that al-Qaida has regrouped" but that their headquarters are more diffuse than they used to be, comprising several training camps in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

She said it was likely that bin Laden is hidden in a more secure location, away from any of those sites.

The United States intercepted the video before it was released on Islamic Web sites where al-Qaida usually posts its messages, a U.S. counterterrorism official said in Washington. U.S. officials had analyzed the video for hours before transcripts and videos were leaked, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.

The official said analysts were studying bin Laden's physical characteristics — for clues about his health after unconfirmed rumors earlier this year that he had died of kidney disease.

White House deputy press secretary Tony Fratto declined to comment on the video until it had been fully analyzed, except to say it was a reminder of the continuing terrorist threat.

"This is why we need to be more vigilant and more persistent in our pursuit of terrorists," Fratto said. "We will continue to pursue them. And it reminds us that we need to be certain that our intelligence professionals have all the tools they need to continue to disrupt their activities."

The Homeland Security Department said it had no credible information warning of an imminent threat to the United States.

Soon after word emerged that the United States had the video, Islamic militant Web sites that usually carry statements from al-Qaida went down and were inaccessible. The reason for the shutdown was not immediately known.

Evan H. Kohlmann, a terrorism expert at globalterroralert.com, said he suspected it was the work of al-Qaida itself, trying to find how the video leaked to U.S. officials.

"For them this is totally disruptive that the U.S. government could have a copy before their targeted audience does," he said. "They could be concerned and trying to plug the leak quickly."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070907/ap_on_re_mi_ea/bin_laden_video;_ylt=AiKG1RkRChGb3VYpburYGbis0NUE

[Jolie Rouge]

John Gibson Compares Osama Bin Laden-Keith Olbermann Talking Points

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTfsW_uv53o&eurl=

Wow! Found this over at Gateway Pundit! Quite scary! http://gatewaypundit.blogspot.com/2007/09/osama-bin-laden-keith-olberman-same.html

Greg Gutfield is on the same page. http://hotair.com/archives/2007/09/08/video-gutfeld-on-the-osama-tape/

Meanwhile… Olbermann compares Osama’s speech to Hannity!
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/brent-baker/2007/09/07/olbermann-likens-bin-ladens-rant-without-point-hannity-crankiness-bozel


http://stoptheaclu.com/archives/2007/09/08/john-gibson-compares-osama-bin-laden-keith-olbermann-talking-points/

[Jolie Rouge]

Thoughts On The Osama Tape: Was It A Forgery?


There has been a lot of talk in the blogosphere about Osama’s beard. Was it fake? Was it dyed?

Here are a few thoughts from Michael Leeden at the Corner:

First, the beard. Robert Spencer finds that Muslims are permitted to dye their hair when going into battle, to confound the enemy into thinking they are young. He links that to the call for the infidels to convert, by now a staple in al Qaeda’s propaganda. It seems to be a tradition: Islam or the sword.

The beard looks odd to me. It seems curly or frizzy, for one thing, not at all like the stringy beard of yore. In fact “Osama” looks like a muppet, not like the real thing. Rush had a lot of fun today comparing the video to the time when the terrorists claimed to have captured an American soldier, and provided a photo, which turned out to be a G.I. Joe doll.

Osama the muppet huh? Hold on a second…let me assemble these pieces together in order. First…another thought from Leeden:

Third, is it really Osama? As you know, I was reliably told something like two years ago that Osama had died. Nothing in this speech sounds at all like the “old” OBL. That man knew how to give a stemwinder, he used elegant language, his threats were blood-curdling, his calls to the faithful inspiring. This man talks like, well, a high school dropout. In fact it reads like an “Onion” spoof. And the sound is bizarre, at least on my IBM desktop. It sounds almost as if there was enough garble in it to make it difficult to match with voice prints of the “real” guy. I’m not convinced.

Hmmmm…not the real Osama? Michael isn’t the only one doubting the authenticity of the tape. George Maschke, at the leftist site Booman Tribune, notices that all references to current events are made during the video freeze.

Osama Bin Laden’s widely publicized video address to the American people has a peculiarity that casts serious doubt on its authenticity: the video freezes at about 1 minute and 36 seconds, and motion only resumes again at 12:30. The video then freezes again at 14:02 remains frozen until the end. All references to current events, such as the 62nd anniversary of the U.S. atomic bombing of Japan, and Sarkozy and Brown being the leaders of France and the UK, respectively, occur when the video is frozen! The words spoken when the video is in motion contain no references to contemporary events and could have been (and likely were) made before the U.S. invasion of Iraq.

This is causing a lot of interesting discussion at freerepublic.

There has also been a lot of discussion about the politics in the video. Some suggesting they sound a lot like the American left.

The Telegraph points the finger to American traitor, Adam Gadahn, as the speech writer. This makes a lot of sense.

Bin Laden referred to “the reeling of many of you under the burden of interest-related debts, insane taxes and real estate mortgage” and blamed “global warming and its woes” on “emissions of the factories the major corporations”.

A former senior US intelligence official said: “It has Adam Gadahn written all over it.” Mike Baker, a former CIA covert operations officer, said the tape left bin Laden with “the title of biggest gas bag in the terrorist world”.

CIA officials said voice analysis of the tape proved it was definitely bin Laden.

In conclusion…there are a lot of oddities that open up a lot of questions. What we do know is that the voice analysis says it is Osama. It wouldn’t be a surprise if Adam Gadahn wrote the speech. I think he probably did. It doesn’t really matter, since Al Qaeda has adopted him as a spokesman anyway. So, he wrote it and Osama read it. The only thing of significance we can ponder on from these pecularities of the tape is whether it is an old video voiced over, or a new one. Either way it opens up a lot of new questions. If it is an old one, and the voice is that of Osama, then why does Al Qaeda not want us to see him in his present state? If it is a new one, we come back to questions about the beard, droopy eye, and why all of the current events were during frozen parts of the film.

Allahpundit makes a good point:

The opening segment is indeed boilerplate but the second segment at 12:36 refers to the Democrats’ failure “to implement your desire to stop the war.” That would have been an odd criticism for Osama to level in 2003 given that popular support for the war in March of that year was bipartisan, with 65% approval, and it would have been in his interest at the time to portray America as united in its “crusade” to make for better jihadist recruitment.

Ace counters:

I’m not altogether sure of that, A-Man. The Democrats were also intent to end the war in 2004 — John Kerry, anyone? — when we know Osama was alive, and so it is quite possible bin Laden would make precisely such a reference back then. He has, if I’m not mistaken, made these sorts of references in the past, has he not? About the need for politicians to end the war? The reference to Democrats being unable to end the war may be a reference to their failure in the 2004 elections, not their success after the 2006 elections.

So I don’t know if that single reference proves he was alive after the November 2006 elections.

One thing is for sure. If any part of this video had the intention to squash the rumors and theories that Osama is dead…it failed.

Heh! Bullwinkle has it all figured out.

http://stoptheaclu.com/archives/2007/09/09/thoughts-on-the-osama-tape-was-it-a-forgery/

[Jolie Rouge]

11 Responses to “Thoughts On The Osama Tape: Was It A Forgery?”

[center]Danny Says:
September 9th, 2007 at 12:46 pm
Obadiah Shoher immediately stamped the video as yet another forgery. C’mon, you don’t expect Osama talking like a leftist academic from American university. His authentic speeches are written way better. And he appears to both threaten with attack (labels Americans polytheists) and offers long-term guidance.

Here’s Obadiah’s news piece http://www.samsonblinded.org/news/osama-commemorates-911-1114

Otter Says:
September 9th, 2007 at 1:00 pm

I guess those illuminutti / reconstructionist / zionist conspirators
aren’t as sophisticated as they would like us to believe. Eh lefties?


kat-missouri Says:
September 9th, 2007 at 1:09 pm

Frankly, the minute I saw the still picture from this video, I figured it was a nice photo shop and dubbing of that old 2004 video. Not just the beard, which looks like its been photo shopped, but the nice yellow robe and white clothes that are obviously the same. Not even my clothes hold up that well after multiple washings and I have soft water, color safe bleach and a washing machine. I doubt bin Laden has access to the same.

His skin color is photo shopped. The beard, you can see in this side by side you have, is photo shopped. The attempts to take it out are right there for everyone to see.

The fact that it went still during a good part of his speech gives it away as well.

I like the analysis of his speech. It thought it was pretty lame for the guy that’s been threatening every country under the sun. Mortgage rates? High interest? Global warming? Is that what’s really on Osama’s mind? I do recall when he made a reference to Bush reading the goat book on 9/11 that is straight out of Michael Moore’s F9/11 so, it may seem plausible. But, honestly, his speech is all wrong. Someone with a couple hundred bucks could buy a half way decent speech synthesizer, yank out any number of old Osama speeches, give them a nice twist and land the same quality.

Usually, OBL comes out with this stuff whenever people are really dogging him as dead and he wants to prove to the world that he isn’t. However, this fakery is either an unskillful, wannabe video jihadist or AQ is so desperate to maintain its face (part of which was blown away when Omar Baghdadi turned out to be a fake) that it will put out any carp to save it.

Either way, it’s not bin Laden. Dude is probably smoking hashish with Satan.

Hot Air Says:
September 9th, 2007 at 1:58 pm

Shenanigans in the Osama video?

That last point is debatable. The opening segment is indeed boilerplate but the second segment at 12:36 refers to the Democrats failure to implement your desire to stop the war. That would have been an odd criticism for Osama to level in 2003 give…

Ace of Spades HQ Says:
September 9th, 2007 at 2:10 pm

Osama Video: Fake?

As a general matter, when someone is doctoring a video, you have to assume there’s a reason for the doctoring. What reason could that be? I imagine there’s several possibilities, but one that must obviously be considered is, well, the obvious one.


My Pet Jawa Says:
September 9th, 2007 at 2:45 pm

Osama Tape Hijinx?

Lotsa buzz about the possibility that the Bin Laden vid was a V/O, with footage being old, etc.


News Busters Says:
September 9th, 2007 at 3:44 pm

Thougts: Osama Tape: Was It Fake?

There are a lot of oddities that open up questions on the authenticity of the latest Al Qaeda propaganda. Michael Leeden, at the Corner, ponders whether this was really Osama with many good points. Another significant find was pointed out by the le…


George Orwell Says:
September 9th, 2007 at 4:08 pm

Cripes, haven’t any of you ever read 1984? You sheeple NEED a common enemy. Even if it is the son of the family that pays your president more money than you pay him. Whether it was a sock puppet or not doesn’t matter. You’re all easily led.


Old War Dogs Says:
September 9th, 2007 at 5:06 pm

2007.09.09 Politics and National Defense Roundup

Petraeus, Crocker To Say Stay The CourseBush’s Top Iraq Advisers To Warn Congress About Changes In War Strategy (CBS/AP) President Bush’s top two military and political advisers on Iraq will warn Congress on Monday that making any significant changes to


Thinker Says:
September 9th, 2007 at 5:07 pm

It is fake, not the genuine C.I.A. asset code named Tim Osman who you all know as Osama bin Laden. Doesn’t anyone else ever notice how these “Al Qaeda” tapes always seem to surface right when the Bushites need them the most?? This one right after a new Zogby poll shows a majority of Americans want a new [read: genuine] investigation into 9/11? Come on. The same thing happened but with an audio tape the LAST time a Zogby poll came out asking the same question.

http://www.bloopdiary.com/viewentry.php?id=68757&num=960&devisualise=1

And remember the 2004 “Osama” video that came out just before the election to give Bush good talking points by associating the Democrats with “Al Qaeda” goals? Notice how in this one “Osama” takes the position of the Democrats’ left wing in criticizing the mainstream Dems for not doing enough to end the war in Iraq? So now the Repubs can say “See?? The Dems want the same thing as Osama!!” The Cheney regime is SOOO transparent. I guess they have to be so hamfisted or else their propaganda would sail harmlessly over the heads of the average American. But it makes it easier for people like me who realize that the whole “war on terror” is phony.


Eugene Says:
September 9th, 2007 at 6:00 pm

New Osama video seems yet another forgery. Everyone needs Osama alive:
terrorists as symbolic leader and the US Administration - to avoid
scaling down the war on terror.

Obadiah Shoher rightly notes ( http://www.samsonblinded.org/news/osama-commemorates-911-1114 ) that new Osama talks like a leftist university professor. I like Shoher’s analysis. No way a terrorist leader like Osama would use a speechwriter. Osama is famous for his rhetoric.

Also, in the tape Osama both threatens America with attack (by “proving” Americans polytheists) and offers (yet another time) long-term coaching in Islam. But his dyed beard makes me cautious. Islam’s mujahedeen dye their
beards before battle.

http://stoptheaclu.com/archives/2007/09/09/thoughts-on-the-osama-tape-was-it-a-forgery/

[YNKYH8R]

I swear the only reason these videos make it on tv is for ratings purposes. It's hard to take a person seriously who is all bark and no bite.