I won’t pretend to be an expert, but I kind of thought Osama bin Laden wasn’t terribly interested in the notion of negotiations. That’s why this confuses me.
Al-Jazeera on Thursday aired an audiotape purportedly from Osama bin Laden, who says al-Qaida is making preparations for attacks in the United States but offering a truce “with fair conditions.” […]
The speaker did not give conditions for a truce in the excerpts aired by Al-Jazeera.
“We do not mind offering you a long-term truce with fair conditions that we adhere to,” he said. “We are a nation that God has forbidden to lie and cheat. So both sides can enjoy security and stability under this truce so we can build Iraq and Afghanistan, which have been destroyed in this war.
We’re obviously talking about a madman, but is this lunatic actually suggesting he’ll leave the West alone just so long as he gets Iraq and Afghanistan?
Like I said, this isn’t necessarily my area of expertise, but it sounds to me like bin Laden, if this is really him, is getting a little desperate. Good.
Update: In comments, Mark from Norwegianity makes a good point.
It sounds like a perfect wedge statement, designed to pit the pro-war Americans against the pro-withdrawal Americans.
If Osama is at the top of his game, the recent threats would be his acknowledgment that Bush’s administration is swiftly hurtling towards oblivion, and there is no reason to hold off on another attack against the US on our soil. This would further exacerbate our already horrible domestic politics with the true believers blaming the peace movement, and the rest of us blaming Bush.
True. bin Laden even mentioned American public opinion polls in his statement (assuming it’s legit).