New tape of Osama bin Laden expected soon

WASHINGTON, March 19 (UPI) -- Al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden is expected to issue a new audio or video message shortly, according to a Web posting by the group.

The announcement, which gave no date for the release, was posted by the administrator of al-Ekhlaas, a password-protected Internet chat room affiliated with al-Qaida that habitually provides advance notice of messages from its leaders.

The SITE Intelligence Group, a private sector consultancy that monitors Islamic extremists on the Web, said in a statement that bin Laden's message would be entitled: "The Response Will Be What You See, Not What You Hear."

The message would be the first from bin Laden since November last year.