Osama was a 'ranting chief executive with weird ideas'

Osama bin Laden was a 'ranting chief executive' of the 'increasingly fractured' Al Qaeda terrorist group who argued with his deputy Ayman al-Zawahiri over who should be sent to different scheduled missions, the treasure trove of intelligence found at his Abbottabad compound has revealed. 

He was reportedly obsessed with making spectacular attacks with an intention of bringing Western economies down, leading to disagreements with his deputy Zawahiri.

A source, who is examining a handwritten journal, five computers, 10 hard drives and 110 thumb drives that were recovered from his hideout in Pakistan, has said that most of bin Laden's ideas were "weird".

Another source said that Osama was like a "chief executive on the top floor", although it was unclear whether anyone was actually following the messages he sent to senior commanders, The Telegraph reports.

Bin Laden and Zawahiri are believed to have had differences over how to launch operations, and who should be given which mission.

Earlier in June, Chairman of the United States Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen had said, "The vast majority (of the material) is incredibly sensitive and highly classified but I will say that what we have learned reaffirms (bin Laden's) focus on the United States and other western powers and that he was very active in terms of leading."

Another leader who features prominently in the memos is Ilyas Kashmiri, who was planning attacks on Britain last year and who is now believed to have been killed by a US drone on June 3 in South Waziristan, near the Afghan border.