Osama Bin Laden and al Quaeda cease fire.

[noxlumos]

What are people's thoughts on the audio tape released by someone "souding like" ( official CIA analysis that!!!???) Osama bin Laden, offering a truce of sorts subject to the Americans pulling out of Iraq. Should they not do so apparently there may be more strikes against the US.Is this to be taken seriously? Is it even Osma bin Laden, or does it just "sound" like him? What effect will this have on the political situation within America and ultimately the UK? Thaks for your thoughts in advance.

[Lonnie]

I haven't seen this yet, but assumming its true, it creates a 'catch 22' situation, damned if you do, damned if you don't.

If the coalition pull out, given the mindset of the Arabs, they will hail it as a victory, as indeed it will be, and loss of universal face for the west, from which they will never recover. And if they don't pull out, nothings really changed, our forces are stuck in a 'no win' situation.

[jno]

the Americans will react with outrage, saying they never negotiate with terrorists; and they won't. I suspect the tape is just to demonstrate bin Laden is still around; he's been quiet for a long time, and the Americans were starting to suspect he might be dead. So he might be, of course.

[jno]

oh, I see they alrady have - see here - well, that wasn't too hard to predict, anyway.

[youngmafbog]

So pull out of Iraq and allow Ossi time to regroup and concentrate on the rest of the world again.

Dont forget Ossi started before the Iraq conflict.

[Loosehead]

Let us not forget that the stated aim of the Islamic extremists is to clean the infidels off the planet and impose world wide Sharia Law.

[metagirl]

why do they take this joker seriously anyways? even if it is a "genuine" bin laden video, why should it hold so much power - the idea that America - or any government - should negotiate with this puppet is ludicrous. he is probably employed by Dick Cheney to "sound off" whenever the "war on terror" needs an extra boost of support in the USA.

[Ward-Minter]

All that Western money Bin Laden has and all he can muster is a C90 cassette.

How can the evil Islamic world take a 6 feet 5 camel humper with a flea ridden beard who hasn't progressed further than a ZX Spectrum seriously.

I imagine the Americans will change absolutely nothing in foreign policy. And why should they?

If Bin Laden is so hard and scary why doesn't he show his face. I wish him, his kids his wives and his followers a good dose of face cancer. That will teach the pesky rag heads.

[qapmoc]

I should think that even if Bin Laden was dead the Americans would want him to appear to be still around, it gives them continueing reasons for the ''WAR ON TERROR'' and if you think there is any way on this earth that the US will leave Iraq or even pull back from the Iran confrontation then you have no idea of the state of the world and the oil supply situation. All the worlds oil fields outside the middle east are in terminal decline, the US oil fields passed their production peak in 1977 and they now import at least 87% of their oil!!
If you want to know the state of the worlds oil situation and its implications for your future (poor to bad or worse) then just google PEAK OIL and go to the first or second site that you find, have a good read and worry!