Purported Bin Laden Offer Rejected

Key European nations, including Iraq war opponents Germany and France, on Thursday vigorously rejected a truce offer purportedly from Osama bin Laden, saying there could be no negotiating with his Al Qaeda terrorist network.

Many saw the offer as an attempt to drive a wedge between the United States and its European allies, exploiting their differences over Iraq.

The offer suggested a subtle shift in strategy by the Al Qaeda chief, who in the past has directed his bloody campaign against the West in general.

The audiotape, which the CIA said probably was an authentic recording by Bin Laden, was broadcast on Arab TV channels. It offered “a truce ... to any country which does not carry out an onslaught against Muslims or interfere in their affairs.”

In Italy -- shocked by the killing of an Italian civilian captured by militants in Iraq -- Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said it was “unthinkable that we may open a negotiation with Bin Laden.”

French President Jacques Chirac, one of the firmest opponents of the war that ousted Saddam Hussein, was equally clear: “No dealings are possible with terrorists.”

Germany also strongly rejected the truce offer. “Any attempt to split Europe will fail,” Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder said.

The tape, broadcast on the pan-Arab television channels Al Jazeera and Al Arabiya, was the first attributed to Bin Laden since January. He is believed to be hiding in mountains along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border.

Aside from any attempt to hinder cooperation with the U.S., the message also served to inform the world that Bin Laden was still alive. The recording includes a reference to Israel’s killing of Hamas leader Sheik Ahmed Yassin on March 22, indicating that it was made in recent weeks.

“I am offering a truce to European countries,” the speaker on the tape said. “Its core is our commitment to cease operations against any country which does not carry out an onslaught against Muslims or interfere in their affairs.”

The message said “the door to a truce is open for three months,” but the period could be extended. “The truce will begin when the last soldier leaves our countries.”

Charles Heyman, an analyst at Jane’s Defense Weekly, said the tape was “a not very subtle attempt to break whatever coalition there is and to destabilize the situation in Iraq.”

A counter-terrorism official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the truce offer marked a different approach by Bin Laden, because it distinguishes between Western nations. “For the most part, he has tended to lump all of the West in the same category, saying in effect, ‘You’re all evil,’ ” the official said.

Rand Corp. analyst Bruce Hoffman said the tactic was “not entirely surprising given his record of opportunism.”

“Like any good psychological warfare officer, he’s changing his message subtly and altering his tactics slightly but trying to achieve the same effect” of widening the gap between the U.S. and its European allies, Hoffman said.

Bin Laden’s usual rhetoric was moderated, avoiding references to Europeans as “the Crusader-Jewish alliance” and referring instead to “our neighbors north of the Mediterranean.”