Bin Laden was last heard from on April 7, exhorting Muslims in a tape obtained by AP to rise up against Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and other governments he claimed were "agents of America." That audiotape, which CIA analysts said appeared to be authentic, made a vague reference to the Iraq conflict, although it was not specific enough to determine whether it had been recorded before or after the Iraqi war began on March 20.
The videotape shows bin Laden and al-Zawahri dressed in loose-fitting Afghan clothing and flat, rolled brim caps known as pakuls. They walk slowly up and down a rocky hill dotted with green plants. In one shot, bin Laden, in his late 40s and more than 1.8m tall, is assisted by a walking stick in his right hand and wears a blanket over his left shoulder. He shows signs of age since his last video image two years ago; his beard is whiter.
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