Transcript of Osama bin Laden tape
broadcast on al-Jazeera
by Osama bin Laden Wednesday February 12, 2003 at 07:42 AM1
"In the name of Allah, the Merciful, the Beneficent: A Message to our
Muslim brothers in Iraq. Alsalam Alikom Wa Rahmat Allah wa Barakato. (Quran
verse) Oh Believers, be pious to God, and never die but when you are believers
in Islam.
We are following with utmost concern the Crusaders'
preparations to occupy the former capital of Islam (Baghdad), loot the fortunes
of the Muslims and install a puppet regime on you that follows its masters in
Washington and Tel Aviv like the rest of the treacherous puppet Arab governments
as a prelude to the formation of Greater Israel.
We need to reassure —
while we are close to the unjust war,
the war of the bawds, America is leading with its allies and agents —
on a
number of important lessons:
First, to be honest in intention that the fighting would be
for the sake of God, not to triumph for nationalism or pagan regimes in all the
Arab countries, including Iraq. God said in his book, 'Those who are the
believers fight for the sake of God. Those who are infidels fight for the sake
of the juggernaut. Fight the followers of the devil. The devil's cause is weak.'
Second, remember that victory comes only from God. We have to
exert all efforts with preparations, stimulation, and jihad. God said, 'O
believers, if you fight for the sake of God, God will grant you victory and make
your standing firm.' Therefore, you are obligated to hurry up to ask for God's
forgiveness from all sins, especially the great ones. The Prophet said, 'Avoid
falling in the seven great sins, which are: believing in any but God, magic,
murder, usury, stealing orphans' money, fleeing from battle, slandering
believing women ... besides, drinking alcohol, adultery, not obeying the
parents, and false testimony.' You should be obedient in general.
Third, we recognized after fighting and defending ourselves
from the American enemy that it depends on its fighting mainly in psychological
war for the huge propaganda machine it has, and it also depends on the heavy air
bombing. America uses these two in order to hide its soldiers' weaknesses, which
are fear, cowardice, and lack of fighting spirit. These soldiers are totally
convinced in their unjust cause and their unjust lying government. They also
lack a just cause to fight for its sake.
They are fighting only to serve the interest of those who
have the capital, arms dealers, oil owners, including the criminal gang in the
White House. Adding to that, those who keep their personal envoys, Bush the
father.
We have recognized that one of the best, effective, and
available means to devoid the aerial force of the crusading enemy of its content
is by digging large numbers of trenches and camouflaging them in huge numbers,
as I previously referred to in my past talk of the Tora Bora battle last year.
Such a great battle where the faithful achieved victory over all material
forces. We did that by holding firm our principles, and with God's help.
I will recall one part of such a great battle to prove how
much they (American soldiers) are cowards, in one side, and how effective are
these trenches in depleting them from another side. We were 300 mojahideen
(holy fighters). We were digging 100 ditches spread over an area of one mile only. The
range is one ditch for every three brothers. To avoid grave human losses during
the air bombing as our centers were exposed in the first hour of the American
warfare in Oct. 7, 2001 —
to a heavy concentrated shelling, which then turned
sporadic during the middle of Ramadan. Then on Ramadan 17, the shelling turned
to a very heavy one, especially after the American command was certain that some
of al-Qaida leaders are in Tora Bora, including the poor slave (talking about
himself) and the holy fighter doctor Ayman el-Zawahri.
The bombing lasted 24 hours a day. No second passed without
aircrafts passing over our heads day and night, as the headquarters in U.S.
Defense Ministry with all other allies had nothing to do but to bomb and destroy
that tiny spot and clear it from existence. The aircrafts were spilling bombs
over us, especially after it finished its main mission in Afghanistan.
The American forces were bombing us with smart bombs, cluster
bombs, and bombs which invade caves. B-52 aircraft were flying every two hours
over our heads and throwing each time, 20 to 30 bombs. The modified Sinmo 13
aircrafts were bombing us daily with new bombs. Despite such a heavy shelling
with the horrible propaganda, the first of its kind, on such a small zone
surrounded from all sides, in addition to the forces of the hypocrites which
were pushed to fight us for a continual half a month, which we faced their daily
waves, despite all that, they (American soldiers) turned back carrying their
killed and injured soldiers. The American troops couldn't dare to invade our
bases, which indicates their cowardice, fear, and the false myths they spread
concerning their military capabilities.
The conclusion is an enormous defeat for the coalition of the
international evil with all its forces facing such a small group of mujahedeen,
300 only in ditches in an area of one mile, in a temperature of 10 degrees below
zero.
The result of that battle was 6 percent injuries among the
individuals, whom we ask God to consider as martyrs, and injuries inside the
ditches were 2 percent only, thank God.
If all the evil global powers were not capable of defeating
one simple mile occupied by mujahedeen using very poor equipment, how can such
evil powers triumph over the Islamic world?
This is impossible, God willing, if they hold their faith in
their religion, and were determined to fight for the sake of God.
Our mujahedeen brothers in Iraq, don't worry about American
lies concerning their power and their smart bombs and laser ones. Such smart
bombs have no use among the mountains, trenches, plains, and forests. They need
an obvious target.
As for the well-camouflaged trenches, the smart or the idiot
bombs can't do anything to it. The only way is haphazard bombing which depletes
the enemy's ammunition and the enemy's money. So go and dig many trenches as it
was mentioned before in the holy book, 'Take the earth as your shelter.' Such a
way will deplete all your enemy reserves in a few months. As for their daily
production, that is easy to bear, God willing.
We advise about the importance of drawing the enemy into
long, close and exhausting fighting, taking advantage of camouflaged positions
in plains, farms, mountains and cities. The enemy fears the most the town fights
and street fights. Such fighting would cause the enemy huge losses of souls.
We stress the importance of martyrdom operations against the
enemy, these attacks that have scared Americans and Israelis like never before.
We also make it clear that anyone who helps America, from the
Iraqi hypocrites (opposition) or Arab rulers, whoever fights with them or offers
them bases or administrative assistance, or any kind of support or help, even if
only with words, to kill Muslims in Iraq, should know that he is an apostate and
that (shedding) his blood and money is permissible (in Islam).
God said (in the Quran) : 'Oh believers, do not take Jews or
Christians as your masters. They are loyal to each other. Those who follow them
is one of them. God does not proselytize the unjust nations.'
I also assure those true Muslims should act, incite and
mobilize the nation in such great events, hot conditions, in order to break free
from the slavery of these tyrannic and apostate regimes, which is enslaved by
America, in order to establish the rule of Allah on Earth. Among regions ready
for liberation are Jordan, Morocco, Nigeria, the country of the two shrines
(Saudi Arabia), Yemen and Pakistan.
You know that such a crusade war concerns the Muslim nation
mainly, regardless of whether the socialist party and Saddam remain or go. So
Muslims in general and Iraq in particular must pull up your pant legs for jihad
against this unjust campaign. You should also keep the ammunitions and weapons,
as it is an obligatory mission.
It is known before that you should not fight raising the pagan banners, but you have to, as a
Muslim, to have a clear faith and banner
during war for the sake of God, as the Prophet said, 'Whoever fights should
raise the word of God.' It is not harmful in such conditions for the Muslims'
interests and socialists' interests to come along with each other during the war
against the crusade, without changing our faith and our declaration that socialists are
infidels. Socialists' leadership had fallen down a long time ago.
Socialists are infidels wherever they are, either in Baghdad or Aden. Such war
which may take place these days is similar to the war between Muslims and Romans
when the interests of the Muslims came along with the interests of the Persians
who both fought against the Romans. Nothing was harmful for the Companions of
the Prophet.
Before I conclude, I would like to assure on the importance
of encouragement (for mujahedeen) and raising their spirits and being alerted
from flickering, confusion, and disinclining. The Prophet said once, 'Encourage
them and don't discourage.'
(For three times he said) 'God, who sent down the book (Quran),
who ran the clouds, who defeated the parties, defeat them (enemy) and grant us
the triumph over them.'
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Serious subjects should be discussed seriously. I'm posting this in the hope that we can all do a better job
of understanding this situation if we refer to the raw text of events like this
speech. I'm not promulgating any conclusions here, just providing the
source material for you to make up your own mind...
1 Transcription provided by: http://sf.indymedia.org