Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden has called for jihad in the Gaza Strip, callin on Muslims to wage war as the only way to defeat Israel. The message came in an audio downloaded a Web site frequently used to disseminate al Qaeda messages.
The audio, about 22 minutes long, is titled: "A Call for Jihad to Stop the Aggression on Gaza. The message of Sheikh Osama Bin Laden to the Muslim Ummah."
In the new message, Bin Laden says the decline of the America's dominance on the world stage was one of the main factors which prompted Israel to go on the offensive in Gaza. "The great and swift decline in America's influence is one of the most important motivations for Israelis to wage such a barbaric attack on Gaza, in a bid to try and make use of the last days of (President) Bush's mandate and the neo-conservatives," he stated.
"Israelis are in a rush to get rid of their enemies in Gaza, and replace them with (Palestinian President Mahmoud) Abbas and his administration, in order for him to protect their backs. They thus carried out this horrific butchery before the end of Bush's term in office before the American weakness shows even more."
Bin Laden noted Bush has left President-elect Barack Obama with "two bitter choices," and wonders whether the next U.S. leader will be able to keep up the fight against al Qaeda and other groups. "Can America keep up the war with us for more decades to come? All reports and analysis indicate that this is not possible. In fact, 75 percent of American people are happy with the departure of the president who got them into wars they could not possibly win."
Bin Laden added President Bush "drowned" the American people in economic woes and "left his successor a difficult legacy, and left him one of two bitter choices… The worst heritage is when a man inherits a long guerrilla warfare with a persevering, patient enemy - a war that is funded by usury. If he (Obama) withdraws from the war, that would be a military defeat, and if he goes on with it, he'll drown in economic crisis."
Bin Laden predicts that Obama will be unable to solve the economic problems facing America. Quoting Obama's vice-presidential pick, Joe Biden, bin Laden says, "Here’s Biden, the deputy of the newly elected president, saying: 'The crisis is even worse that we expected, and the entire American economy is in peril.'”
Bin Laden taunts President Bush over his pledge to abolish "terrorism" and kill or arrest "terrorist" leaders - a promise the outgoing American President couldn't keep, according to the Saudi born al Qaeda chief. "A group of your sons declared Jihad on that single power, the Hitler of our time, we thus broke its horn, struck his fortress and demolished his tower. He thus became enraged and said he would bring the leaders of the Mujahideen, dead or alive, to regain America's stature in the world and set it as an example for everybody," bin Laden said.
