Bin Laden tape focuses on disaster relief
By DPA, IANSFriday, October 1, 2010
CAIRO - An audio recording purportedly from Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and calling on Muslims to help with disaster relief and highlighting the dangers of climate change, appeared on Islamist websites Friday.
The authenticity of the recording has not been established.
For a little over 11 minutes, a man’s voice that sounds like that of bin Laden, talks about the flood in Pakistan and calls for greater assistance to the disaster-stricken area.
The man says he has heard from Pakistani mothers who were in danger of losing their children.
He urges Muslims to plan with vision with regard to housing and infrastructure in their societies.
Poverty-stricken areas need proper farming and roads to improve the quality of life of children, particularly in Sudan, Somalia, Chad and Yemen.
He also stresses on the dangers of climate change and calls on Muslim merchant families to use their wealth to help in disaster relief.
“The issue today is not a case of profits or losses, but is a matter of life and death,” he said.
The recording was shorter, and much more reserved in tone and pace than the one released last month by Ayman al-Zawahiri, widely believed to be bin Laden’s deputy.
