Obama sowing new seeds of hatred: Osama

Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden on Wednesday accused US President Barack Obama of 'antagonising Muslims' and said his Pakistan policy has generated 'new seeds of hatred and revenge against America'.

In the tape broadcast on Al-Jazeera, the Arabic-language TV network, shortly after the US President touched down in Saudi Arabia, Bin Laden, the world's most wanted terrorist, accused Obama of following his predecessor George W Bush's policy of antagonising Muslims.

'He has followed the steps of his predecessor in antagonising Muslims and laying the foundation for long wars,' Bin Laden said, referring to ongoing military offensive against Taliban and Al Qaeda terrorists in the restive Swat valley in Pakistan.

This message comes ahead of Obama's visit to Egypt on Thursday where he is to make a major speech to the Muslim world after eight years of fraught ties under Bush.

It also comes shortly after Bin Laden's number two Ayman al-Zawahiri urged Egyptians to shun Obama, saying his Middle East trip was at the invitation of the 'torturers of Egypt' and the 'slaves of America'.

In the tape, Bin Laden cited strikes, destruction and Obama's 'order' to Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari 'to prevent the people of Swat from implementing Shariat law'.

'All this led to the displacement of about a million Muslim elders, women and children from their villages and homes. They became refugees in tents after they were honoured in their own homes,' the message said.

'This basically means that Obama and his administration put new seeds of hatred and revenge against America. The number of these seeds is the same as the number of those victims and refugees in Swat and the tribal area in northern and southern Waziristan.'

The message added: 'The American people need to prepare to only gain what those seeds bring up.'

In March, Bin Laden also issued purported messages. He called for Somalia's new president to be overthrown and called Israel's recent offensive in Gaza a 'holocaust'.

Bin Laden has delivered many messages over the years, but the last video message from him was in early September 2007.