Osama bin Laden

The audiotape, which the CIA says is probably genuine, was broadcast on the pan-Arab television stations Al-Jazeera and al-Arabiya, and is the first purportedly from the al-Qaeda leader since January.

"I am offering a truce to European countries," the taped message said. "Its core is our commitment to cease operations against any country that does not carry out an onslaught against Muslims or interfere in their affairs."

In Italy, a nation shocked by the killing of an Italian civilian captured by militants in Iraq, Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said it was "unthinkable that we may open a negotiation with bin Laden, everybody understands this."

Speaking in Algeria, French President Jacques Chirac, one of the firmest opponents of the U.S.-led war, said terrorism "is a barbarous act that attacks innocent people."

"One cannot lean on religion or any other motivation to perpetrate terrorist acts," Chirac said. "No dealings are possible with terrorists."

The Japan Times Weekly: April 24, 2004
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