Bin Laden Truce Offer: An expert opinion

Some are portraying Osama bin Laden's offer of a truce as a sign of weakness. Michael Scheuer, a former CIA counter-terrorism expert on al-Qaeda, disagrees:

Q: Is he reading us our rights?

Scheuer: In many ways that’s exactly what he’s up to, one final try to get us to change our policies or he’s going to attack us again.

Q: Can he do it?

Scheuer: Oh sure, our borders are wide open. The other thing I always point to is that the Soviet nuclear arsenal isn’t under control. Also the message is very much in the tradition of Islamic history. The prophet offered truces to infidels; Salidin offered truces to Europeans during the Crusades. It will be a message that resonates very loudly in the Islamic world, in a positive way.

Scheuer: I think there will be an attack on America within the next year. I think it was about nine months after he warned the Europeans that London occurred. I would think before the November ‘06 elections, but I’m not sure he’s interested in influencing the elections. Although he clearly prefers the Republicans to the Democrats. He’s afraid the Democrats will fool Muslims by not changing policy but having a softer rhetoric.
www.consortiumnews.com/2006/020306a.html