Cairo : In a second audio recording in 24 hours, Al Qaida leader Osama Bin Laden said governments of Muslim nations have not done enough to help Pakistanis hit by floods that killed hundreds and displaced millions.
As in the earlier recording, Bin Laden's criticism was measured in the message released on Saturday on militant websites.
By avoiding his familiar calls for attacks on the West and the toppling of US-allied regimes in the Arab world and instead speaking of humanitarian causes like the floods in Pakistan and issues like climate change, Bin Laden appears to be trying to broaden Al Qaida's appeal beyond its traditional extremist support base.
Still, he singles out Arab leaders, accusing them of failing to respond to a calamity in a fellow Muslim nation and asserting that the UN chief did more than them to help Pakistan.
Brotherhood claims
"The (UN's) secretary-general came to witness the catastrophe for himself, and yet no Arab leaders came to witness the disaster despite the short distances and claims of brotherhood," he said.
A copy of the 13-minute audiotape, entitled "Help your Pakistani Brothers," was made available by the US-based Site Intelligence Group, which monitors jihadi forums.
Its authenticity could not be independently confirmed, though the voice resembled that of Bin Laden in confirmed messages by him.
The recording was aired along with a still photograph of a smiling Bin Laden superimposed over pictures of flood victims.
The message was similar to the recording released on Friday in which Bin Laden called for the establishment of a relief organisation to prevent flooding in Muslim nations, create development projects in impoverished regions and improve agriculture to guarantee food security.
In Saturday's message, Bin Laden accused the media of failing to cover the flooding tragedy effectively or provide "the real picture" of natural disasters in the Muslim world.
Journalists should also increase coverage of climate change, he said.
