Osama bin Laden Is Dead?

An image taken from an internet posting by al Qaeda's media arm, al Sahab on September 11, 2006, shows Osama bin Laden speaking in an unknown location.

REUTERS/Internet

The Jakarta Post is carrying flash news that the French Defense Ministry on Saturday called for an internal investigation of the leak of an intelligence document that raises the possibility that Osama bin Laden may have died of typhoid in Pakistan a month ago but said the report of the death remained unverified.

The information defused this morning by the l'Est Republicain newspaper concerning the possible death of Osama bin Laden cannot be confirmed.

The daily newspaper for the Lorraine region in eastern France printed what it described as a confidential document from the French foreign intelligence service DGSE (or Direction Generale des Services Exterieurs) citing an uncorroborated report from Saudi secret services that the leader of the al-Qaida terror network had died.

The contents of the document, dated Sept. 21, or Thursday, were not confirmed by French or other intelligence sources. However, the DGSE transmitted the note to President Jacques Chirac and other officials, the newspaper said.

Defense Minister Michele Alliot-Marie "has demanded an investigation be carried out of this leak," a ministry statement said, adding that transmission of the confidential document couldrisk punishment.

Defense Ministry spokesman Jean-Francois Bureau, clarifying the statement, said that the DGSE document exists but that its contents - that bin Laden is allegedly dead - cannot be confirmed.

The DGSE report indicated that its information came from a single source.

According to a reliable source, Saudi security services are now convinced that Osama bin Laden is dead. . . . . The chief of al Qaeda was a victim of a severe typhoid crisis while in Pakistan on August 23, 2006

There have been periodic reports of bin Laden's illness or death in recent years but none has been proven accurate.

According to this document, Saudi security services were pursuing further details, notably the place of his burial . . . . The chief of al Qaeda was a victim of a severe typhoid crisis while in Pakistan on August 23, 2006.

According to the Scotsman, (Reuters):

L'Est Republicain, published a report quoting a French secret service report on 21 September quoted French authorities:

The information published this morning in the L'Est Republicain newspaper relating to the supposed death of Osama bin Laden cannot be confirmed.

The Defence Minister (Michele Alliot-Marie) has asked that an inquiry be carried out to determine the origin of the leak that can be punished by criminal charges."

According to a usually reliable source, the Saudi services are now convinced that Osama bin Laden is dead.

The information gathered by the Saudis indicates that the head of al Qaeda was a victim while he was in Pakistan on August 23, 2006, of a very serious case of typhoid which led to a partial paralysis of his internal organs.