Bill Sykes' Newsletter from America.
(December 2001)
An ex-Brit gives his views-(without fear
or favor)---of the American Scene
Osama Bin Laden interviewed by Pakistani journalist.
 On
Saturday the10th of November, Osama Bin Laden was interviewed
by Hamid Mir the editor of the Urdu language newspaper
"Ausaf", who conducted the interview for the
mass-circulation Pakistani news paper "Dawn".
It was reported that Osama Bin Laden said that his Al-Qaeda
group possess chemical and nuclear weapons.
 In
the English version of the interview, Bin Laden was quoted
as saying, "If America uses chemical and nuclear
weapons against us we may retaliate with chemical and
nuclear weapons."
In the Urdu version, Bin Laden does not threaten to use
nuclear or chemical weapons.
Otherwise the two versions are similar.
Whilst refusing to admit responsibility for the attacks
on the United States, Bin Laden accused the United States,
and it's allies, of massacring Muslims in Palestine, Chechnya,
Kashmir and Iraq.
He then said that the Muslims had the right to attack
the United States as a reprisal.
I must make it perfectly
clear that I consider that
none of the material in this interview is verifiable.
The questionable unity of the Coalition against terrorism.
 Prime
Minister Tony Blair recently met many high ranking mid-east
ministers, including the President of Syria, in an effort
to bolster support for the War on terrorism.
He apparently had a rough time.
He was condemned by the Muslims for the British support
of Israel's aggression against the Palestinian Arabs,
and was cited as a puppet of the American Government.
In all fairness to Mr. Blair I find that he is the only
politician, of any consequence, that I have heard to declare
that a viable independent Arab state should be established.
 Despite
apparent, but somewhat transparent, overwhelming support
for counter terrorism action, the war in Afghanistan has
made quite a few nations uneasy, especially Pakistan and
Iran who supported opposing Afghan factions over the past
decade.
Unfortunately, you can never please everyone.
There are bound to be dissenters to whatever action is
taken, and it was self evident that action had to be taken
against the perpetrators of the terrible September criminal
disaster.
The method of tackling the problem is somewhat debatable.
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