Bin Laden followers celebrate 'birthday'

Followers of Osama bin Laden flooded Islamist websites today posting messages in celebration of his 50th birthday.

Dozens of bin Laden fans posted videos and pictures on the internet commemorating the elusive al Qaida leader’s life and renewing their allegiance to him and his terrorist network. The authenticity of the messages could not be verified.

His whereabouts remain a mystery more than five years after the September 11 terrorist attacks and there is doubt surrounding his true birth date.

Virginia-based think tank GlobalSecurity.org, said bin Laden, who was born in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, was either born on March 10, 1957 or July 30 of the same year. The FBI lists that he was born in 1957. Attempts to independently confirm bin Laden’s date of birth were not successful.

Speculation over whether bin Laden is dead or alive has been swirling for years as the most publicised manhunt in history has come up empty.

He is believed to be in the lawless border region between Afghanistan and Pakistan, in the rugged mountains on the border area, or inside Afghanistan itself in the remote eastern province of Nuristan and Kunar.

Coalition troops have conducted hundreds of search-and-seizure operations in this region, but without known success, while intelligence officials have suggested that the trail for the world’s most wanted fugitive have gone cold.

The last time bin Laden appeared in a video tape was on October 29, 2004 to warn the American people and administration to stop meddling in Arab and Muslim affairs or they would face a second September 11-style attack.

A number of bin Laden tapes have been posted on Islamic websites since then, the latest in June, but his voice has sounded tired, sparking rumours that he is seriously ill. Bin Laden’s deputy, Ayman al-Zawahri, meanwhile, has become more visual, appearing in four messages since the beginning of this year and more than a dozen last year.

Intelligence experts also believe bin Laden may be choosing to keep a low profile.

Bin Laden founded al Qaida in 1988 in Afghanistan mainly to fight the Soviet invasion, but its ideology has expanded across the globe with the help of technology and the internet, inspiring thousands of young fundamentalist Muslims.

Many have formed mini-al Qaida cells that may not have direct contact with the original terror group, but adopt its methods, with many carrying out attacks against Western targets around the world.