U.S. publishes files found in bin Laden killing raid

PanARMENIAN.Net - In his final years alive, Osama Bin Laden urged his followers to remain focused on attacking the U.S., newly released documents show, according to BBC News.

U.S. officials have published a trove of files found at his Pakistan hideout the night the al Qaeda chief was killed. They include Arabic correspondence with his lieutenants, a love letter to one of his wives and an application form to join the terror group. He also had English language books on economic and military theory.

In one of the letters, Bin Laden instructs one of his deputies to tell "our brothers" that they must remained focused on fighting Americans.

Their "job is to uproot the obnoxious tree by concentrating on its American trunk, and to avoid being occupied with the local security forces," he writes.

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) said a "rigorous" review had taken place before the spy agency ordered the release of the documents.

There are 103 papers and videos in all, including a number of translated letters, notes, and other materials detailing al Qaeda operations. Many of the documents also have a version available in Arabic.

One letter mocks President George W Bush's War on Terror, with Bin Laden writing that it had not created stability in Iraq or Afghanistan.

There is also section entitled Materials Regarding France, which includes a number of academic reports and articles about France's military, politics and economy.

Also listed is a document described as a "suicide prevention guide", several English language books including Bob Woodward's Obama's Wars, several maps, and a few video game guides.

He made a video letter to one of his wives, in which he says: "Know that you do fill my heart with love, beautiful memories, and your long-suffering of tense situations in order to appease me and be kind to me."

Among the documents appears to be an application to join the ranks of al Qaeda, including questions about hobbies and a willingness to be a martyr.

The documents are being released in the wake of President Obama's calls for greater transparency, said Jeffrey Anchukaitis, a spokesman for the ODNI. "The intelligence community will be reviewing hundreds more documents in the near future for possible declassification and release," he said.

Some of the material that has been included in the trove was previously declassified for use in federal prosecutions.

In 2012, some documents recovered in the raid were released by the research wing of the US military academy, West Point.