Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda group vowed today to hit US and British interests in retaliation for US-led strikes against Afghanistan, warning Americans and Britons to avoid planes and skyscrapers.
In a statement broadcast on Qatar's al-Jazeera television, Qaeda spokesman Sulaiman Bu Ghaith also told US and British citizens to leave the Gulf, or else "fire will flare underneath their feet".
In Washington, a White House spokeswoman said the Bush administration dismissed the threats as propaganda. Earlier, Bush said in a radio address that the US government was taking strong precautions to protect Americans at home and abroad from more terror attacks.
Bu Ghaith's comments were the second set of warnings al-Qaeda made to the United States in the past week.
"We tell Bush and others in the US administration that the storms will not stop, particularly the storm of hijacked planes, until the strikes against Afghanistan end and until Palestinian land is liberated, Bu Ghaith said.
We also advise Americans and Britons, especially Muslims, children and all those who oppose US policy, not to ride planes or live in high buildings, he said.
AFP
