Osama Bin Laden trades lives with France

Cairo, Jan 23: An Arabic news channel Al-Jazeera aired an audio message of Osama Bin Laden on Friday, Jan 21. In which he had demanded France to recall his troops from Afghanistan in exchange for the release of French hostage. Atleast seven French hostage being held by al-Qaeda associates.

In the message broadcast by Al-Jazeera Bin Laden said, "the exit of your hostages out of the hands of our brothers depends on the exit of your troops from Afghanistan,"

The voice is being authenticated but the channel, which broadcasted audio believes that it was from al-Qaeda. The al-Qaeda has often sent audio messages to Al-Jazeera for broadcast.

Sources said, France has about 3,850 troops in Afghanistan as part of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) mission fighting the Taliban. French forces are deployed mainly in the Kapisa and Surobi districts north and east of Kabul, the Afghan capital.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy remarked that his country would remain unshaken in its role to help Afghanistan to get stabilized.

French Foreign Ministry spokesman Bernard Valero said, "we are determined to continue our efforts on behalf of the Afghan people, with our allies."

Bin Laden referring to Sarkozy's refusal, last year, to withdraw the troops from Afghan and told French people, "your president's rejection is a result of being a hireling to America and is a green light to kill the hostages... His stand will cost you a high price on different aspects inside or outside France."

In that message Bin Laden also compared between their resistance movement against the Nazi occupation of France during World War II and the Afghan rebels killing soldiers from the West. He claimed that, France judge in a double standards.

He questioned why one is called terrorism and the other was a fight for freedom?

OneIndia News