By Caroline Alexander and Mahmoud Kassem
March 25 (Bloomberg) -- Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden warned that more Americans would be killed if the self- proclaimed mastermind behind the Sept. 11 attacks is executed, according to an audio tape aired by al-Jazeera.“The day America will take such a decision it will have taken a decision to execute whomever we capture,” Bin Laden said on the audio tape. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four accused conspirators are to go on trial in the U.S. and the government intends to seek the death penalty.In the recording, the al-Qaeda leader also warned President Barack Obama of further attacks on U.S. soil if the Palestinian “situation” isn’t resolved.Alexandria, Virginia-based IntelCenter said the statement appears to be authentic and “a valid indicator of an increased threat of kidnappings targeting Americans in the immediate period and following through” the trial of ohammed.“This is the most direct kidnapping threat I can recall in a public message” from bin Laden, Ben Venzke, chief executive officer of IntelCenter, which provides information about militant groups to emergency workers and security professionals, said in an e-mail. Al-Qaeda may see abductions “as the most effective method to apply pressure to the U.S,” he said.Mohammed was captured by Pakistani troops in 2003 and later sent to the U.S. detention camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, where he remains as officials debate whether to give him a military trial there or a civilian trial in New York City.Almost 3,000 people were killed during al-Qaeda’s coordinated attacks of 2001, most at the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Virginia just outside of Washington.Bin Laden’s last message was aired on Jan. 24. In it, he claimed responsibility for the failed attempt to blow up a U.S. airliner on Christmas Day as it approached Detroit.
March 25 (Bloomberg) -- Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden warned that more Americans would be killed if the self- proclaimed mastermind behind the Sept. 11 attacks is executed, according to an audio tape aired by al-Jazeera.“The day America will take such a decision it will have taken a decision to execute whomever we capture,” Bin Laden said on the audio tape. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four accused conspirators are to go on trial in the U.S. and the government intends to seek the death penalty.In the recording, the al-Qaeda leader also warned President Barack Obama of further attacks on U.S. soil if the Palestinian “situation” isn’t resolved.Alexandria, Virginia-based IntelCenter said the statement appears to be authentic and “a valid indicator of an increased threat of kidnappings targeting Americans in the immediate period and following through” the trial of ohammed.“This is the most direct kidnapping threat I can recall in a public message” from bin Laden, Ben Venzke, chief executive officer of IntelCenter, which provides information about militant groups to emergency workers and security professionals, said in an e-mail. Al-Qaeda may see abductions “as the most effective method to apply pressure to the U.S,” he said.Mohammed was captured by Pakistani troops in 2003 and later sent to the U.S. detention camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, where he remains as officials debate whether to give him a military trial there or a civilian trial in New York City.Almost 3,000 people were killed during al-Qaeda’s coordinated attacks of 2001, most at the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Virginia just outside of Washington.Bin Laden’s last message was aired on Jan. 24. In it, he claimed responsibility for the failed attempt to blow up a U.S. airliner on Christmas Day as it approached Detroit.
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