US officials have reported no "overt threat" by Osama bin Laden after analysing a new video recording released by the Al-Qaeda leader as the sixth anniversary of the September 11th attacks on New York approaches.
Osama bin Laden seen in an image reportedly taken from a forthcoming video message marking the sixth anniversary of the September 11th attacks.
The video, which appears to have been made as recently as this summer, includes references to current events in the war in Iraq, a US government official said. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the tape is nearly 30 minutes long.
In excerpts released by the US, bin Laden claims that President George W Bush is repeating the mistakes of Soviet leaders by refusing to acknowledge losses in Iraq.
"How similar is your position today to their position approximately two decades ago," the Al-Qaeda leader said in a reference to the former Soviet Union's operations in Afghanistan.
"The mistakes of Brezhnev are being repeated by Bush, who - when asked about the date of his withdrawing of force from Iraq - said in effect that the withdrawal will not be during his reign, but rather, during the reign of the one who succeeds him. And the significance of these words is not hidden."
Bin Laden also said US Democrats had failed to stop the war in Iraq because of the power corporations wield in the United States.
"So in answer to the question about the causes of the Democrats' failure to stop the war, I say: they are the same reasons which led to the failure of former president (John F) Kennedy to stop the Vietnam war. Those with real power and influence are those with the most capital," bin Laden said.
"And since the democratic system permits major corporations to back candidates, be they presidential or congressional, there shouldn't be any cause for astonishment - and there isn't any - in the Democrats' failure to stop the war," he said.
Bin Laden refers to French President Nicolas Sarkozy and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown - a potential signal to intelligence authorities that the video was recently made.
The Al-Qaeda leader mentions September 11th several times and says that while the US is the greatest economic and military power in the world, the nation is unjust.
White House deputy press secretary Tony Fratto declined to comment on the video until it has been fully analysed.
However, he called it "a reminder to everyone that terrorists are out there and they are actively trying to kill Americans and threaten our interests".
"This is why we need to be more vigilant and more persistent in our pursuit of terrorists," he said. "We will continue to pursue them.
Soon after it emerged that the United States had the video, Islamic militant websites which usually carry statements from Al-Qaeda went down and were inaccessible.