Osama Bin Laden Dead?
Bin Laden believed dead: report
Source: ABC
A newspaper has quoted a French secret service report as saying Saudi Arabia is convinced Al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden died of typhoid in Pakistan last month.
The French regional newspaper, L'Est Republicain, has printed what it says is a copy of the report, dated September 21.
It says the report was shown to French President Jacques Chirac, Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin and France's Interior and Defence Ministers on the same day.
"According to a usually reliable source, the Saudi services are now convinced that Osama Bin Laden is dead," the document said.
"The information gathered by the Saudis indicates that the head of Al Qaeda was a victim while he was in Pakistan on August 23, 2006, of a very serious case of typhoid, which led to a partial paralysis of his internal organs."
The report, stamped with a "confidential defence" label and the initials of the French secret service, says Saudi Arabia first heard the information on September 4 and is waiting for more details before making an official announcement.
France's Defence Ministry says the report cannot be confirmed but it will launch an inquiry into the leak of secret documents.
The Pakistani Government says it has received no information from any foreign government that would corroborate the report.
Saudi-born Bin Laden was based in Afghanistan until US-backed forces overthrew its Taliban Government in late 2001.
Since then, US and Pakistani officials have regularly said they believe he is hiding somewhere on the rugged border between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
The last videotaped message released by Bin Laden was in late 2004, but several low-quality audio tapes have been released this year.
Likely or just rumours?😕