Bin Laden urges 'iron and fire'
2008-03-21 07:25
London - Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden
called on Palestinians to use "iron and fire" to end an Israeli
blockade of the Gaza Strip and liberate their country.
In an audiotape broadcast by the Qatar-based Al Jazeera
satellite channel on Thursday, bin Laden also urged Muslims to
keep up the struggle against US forces in Iraq as a way of
"liberating Palestine".
"My speech is about the Gaza siege and the way to retrieve
it and the rest of Palestine from the hands of the Zionist
enemy," bin Laden said.
"Our enemies did not take it (Palestine) by negotiations and
dialogue, but with fire and iron. And this is the way to get it
back."
The recording came one day after bin Laden issued an
Internet statement threatening the European Union with grave
punishment for the publication of cartoons mocking Islam's
Prophet Muhammad.
It was not immediately possible to verify the authenticity
of Thursday's recording.