Washington, May 12 (IANS): A handwritten journal taken from Osama bin Laden's hideout in Pakistan show that the slain Al Qaeda leader was communicating with other members of the terrorist group, US media reports citing officials say.
"There are strong indications there is back and forth with other terrorists," CNN reported citing a US official. "These are not just the writings of an elderly jihadi." There is evidence of two-way written communications demonstrating that not only was bin Laden sending messages, he was getting responses as well, he said.
US officials cited by the WashingtonPost said bin Laden was in touch with frequently and directly with among others Ayman al-Zawahiri, his long time second in command, as well as Atiyah Abd al-Rahman, a Libyan operative who is the latest to fill the organization's No. 3 slot.
Bin Laden's personal journal, which was seized during the US raid, includes information about the importance of attacking the US and lists key dates on the American calendar-including July 4, Christmas and the 10th anniversary of Sep 11, 2001 attacks. At this point, the official said, there is no indication of a time, date or place for any specific attack, and much of what has been seen is more bin Laden ideas than actual plans.
The Post, citing US intelligence officials analysing the seized material from the bin Laden, said he was preoccupied with attacking the United States over all other targets, a fixation that led to friction with followers. Even while sealed inside a cement compound in a Pakistani city, bin Laden functioned like a crime boss pulling strings from a prison cell, it said. "Bin Laden is saying, 'You've got to focus on the US and the West,'" a senior US intelligence official was quoted as saying.
Bin Laden served as a "chief executive who is giving fairly generic, broad instructions and guidance rather than tactical orders," the official said.
Russia says US had right to kill bin Laden:
Russia believes the US had the right under international law to kill Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday. Bin Laden was shot dead by US special forces during a raid on his home in the Pakistani town of Abbottabad on May 2, reports IANS/RIA Novosti from Moscow.
"Our position is very simple. After Sept 11, 2001 the UN Security Council adopted a resolution recognising the US' right to self-defence," Lavrov said in an interview with the Moskovskie Novosti daily to be published Thursday. "The right to self-defence is not subject to any restrictions."
However, the US should provide more details about the raid, Lavrov stated. "I understand that the US side is ready to offer a detailed explanation," he said.
Lavrov also stressed that terror must be fought within the bounds of international law, saying that politicians who issue criminal orders "must be prosecuted". "This is what the International Criminal Court is for," he said.
