Their Contemptuous, Dismissive Opinion Of Your Intelligence

Expert points to strong evidence of Bin Laden presence in Yemen

"Dubai: "Yemen has become the base for Al Qaida organisation in the Arabian peninsula" according to Abdul Bari Atwan, the editor in chief of the London-based newspaper Al Quds Al Arabi and an expert on Al Qaida being one of the few journalists to have spent time with Osama Bin Laden.

"I have no doubts that Osama either visited Yemen or is actually based there," Atwan told Gulf News in an interview.

"When I met him in Tora Bora [in November 1996] I asked him, ‘One of these days you will be kicked out of Afghanistan like you were from Sudan. Have you considered an alternative?' His answer was Yemen because ‘its mountains are like Tora Bora's and the country will embrace me and will be warm towards me'."

Atwan says he was amazed then that one of Bin Laden's security advisors, who was part of his entourage had asked him to omit this piece of information from his writings because Bin Laden shouldn't reveal his future plans."