Pentagon Releases Osama’s Home Videos

The Pentagon has released home videos of Osama Bin Laden, seized from the Abbottabad compound in Pakistan where US Navy SEALs killed Qaeda’s kingpin last week. The tapes show him watching himself on television, and preparing a video message addressed to the US. In the first video, filmed in October or November 2010, Bin Laden is shown wearing a white traditional cap and white robes as he speaks to the camera in the style of previous video addresses by the al-Qaeda leader.

U.S. officials, who Saturday released five videos, emphasized the recordings and other materials seized at bin Laden's Pakistan compound show the terrorist still had a firm hand on the tiller.
Wayne Madsen, an investigative journalist speaking to Al Jazeera from Washington DC, said that it was still difficult to confirm that all these videos do show bin Laden, as some are not clear.

"There are going to be many more questions raised after the release of these videos, because there have been videos and images in the past that were thought to be of bin Laden, but some of those turned out to be fake."

Pentagon officials have removed audio from the film, citing security concerns, but said it was a message to the United States. Three other clips appear to be a rehearsal for the video message, says the media man in Washington. According to the BBB, it is the first such film to emerge since al-Qaeda released a video address from Bin Laden in 2007, says our correspondent.