Bin Laden's Iraq as base for Palestinian death cults

CNN:

Al-Jazeera broadcast on Thursday an audiotape on which a voice identified as Osama bin Laden declares "Iraq is the perfect base to set up the jihad to liberate Palestine."

The voice calls on "Muslims in neighboring countries" to "do their best in supporting their mujahedeen brothers in Iraq."

"My speech to you is about the siege of Gaza and the way to liberate it," he said.

"The Gaza siege is a direct result of Annapolis," he adds, apparently referring to the site of November's summit in Annapolis, Maryland, where Israeli and Palestinian leadership agreed to work toward a two-state plan.

He accused Arabs who supported the plan of having become "partners in this horrendous crime."

And he predicted, "Palestine will be restored to us, with God's permission, when we wake up from our slumber and adhere to our faith and sacrifice our souls and belongings for it."

The speaker called for armed revolt in the Middle East.

"Palestine and its people have been suffering from too much bitterness for almost a century now on the hands of the Christians and the Jews. And both parties didn't take Palestine from us by negotiations and dialogue, but with arms and fire, and this is the only way to take it back," he said....

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I am not sure why CNN ignores the fact that this message completely undercuts the Obama-Clinton message on Iraq. It destroys their Iraq policy and yet there is no mention of that in the story as there no doubt would be if the message suggested no connection with Iraq. I think we are owed an explanation for this failure. This should be the headline of this story.

However, another message to take away from this story is bin Laden's desperation to revitalize his effort in Iraq by trying to induce Palestinians into his failing jihad. He is obvious desperate for man power to replace all those lost in the last year's surge of US and Iraqi forces. He is clearly losing in Iraq and is floundering around for new assets to throw at his losing effort and the Palestinian death cults look like natural allies, except so far they have been to smart to be drawn into bin Laden's quagmire and at the same time give up the US subsidy that sustains them in the occupied territories. The Palestinians have been careful to not grow their war beyond Israel, and bin Laden's suggestion would certainly do that.