Bin Laden Claims Detroit Bomb Attempt

Osama bin Laden claimed responsibility for the attempt to bomb a Detroit-bound airliner on Christmas in a new audio message released today that threatened more attacks on the United States. The message suggests the al-Qaeda leader wants to appear in direct command of the terrorist group's many affiliates when some analysts have suggested he is mostly a figurehead.

In the minute-long recording carried by al-Jazeera, bin Laden addressed President Obama, saying the attack was meant to send a message similar to that of the Sept. 11 attacks. "The message delivered to you through the plane of the heroic warrior Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab was a confirmation of the previous messages sent by the heroes of the Sept. 11," he said. "America will never dream of security unless we will have it in reality in Palestine." Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula originally claimed responsibility for the failed plot. (More Osama bin Laden stories.)