A CIA technical analysis has concluded that the voice on an audiotaped message broadcast this week and said to be Osama bin Laden's is probably authentic, an official at the intelligence agency said on Friday.
But the evaluation has not determined when the message was taped, and the official said that while the finding that the voice was that of bin Laden carried a high degree of certainty, the tests were not definitive and were continuing.
The audiotape and an accompanying videotape of bin Laden and his deputy, Ayman al-Zawahiri, were broadcast on Wednesday by an Arab satellite television network, al-Jazeera.
The network said the tapes were recorded in April and May. But the CIA official said that the tape contained no references that would clearly show when it was made.
On the audiotape, al-Zawahiri called on resistance fighters in Iraq to attack American forces. The CIA said on Thursday that the voice on the audiotape attributed to al-Zawahiri was "probably" authentic, but said that it could not be determined when it was recorded.
On the audiotape, the voice attributed to al-Zawahiri said: "Devour the Americans just like the lions devour their prey. Bury them in the Iraqi graveyard."
In the message, al-Zawahiri mentioned the war in Iraq, suggesting that the tape could have been recorded sometime since fighting started in March. The voice said to be bin Laden's refers to the Sept. 11 hijackers, but makes no reference to more recent events.
The videotape showed bin Laden and al-Zawahiri, dressed in native Afghan clothing, hiking along stony mountain trails. At one point, bin Laden walked with a cane and at another he slung an AK-47 assault rifle over his shoulder.
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