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It is nearly a year since the September 11 attacks
and there is still no sign of terror suspect Osama bin Laden.
Despite the fall of his Afghan hosts - the Taliban
- and ongoing military operations, the world does not even
know for sure if he is still alive.
Meanwhile, White House officials are saying
a lot less about the Al-Qaeda leader these days.
Channel NewsAsia's US
Correspondent, Malcolm Brown tells us more.
 Less
than a week after the September 11 attacks, Osama was already
a key target in the new war on terrorism.
But months have passed with no confirmed news
about the Al-Qaeda leader's fate.
It is thought he managed to escape from Tora
Bora in eastern Afghanistan, as US warplanes bombed the cave
complex there.
Hamid Gul, Former Director-General, Pakistan's
Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence, said, "He
knows that country like the back of his hand. So he would
be safest in Afghanistan. Who is going to catch him in Afghanistan?
But in Pakistan, he would run the risk of exposure and being
caught by any of the Pakistani government agencies."
While the manhunt continues, the Bush administration
rarely mentions Osama these days, emphasising instead the
wider war on terrorism and the need to defeat Al-Qaeda as
an entity.
Peter Bergen, who has written a book on Osama
and his organisation, believes that Al-Qaeda would survive
without its leader, but he says the loss would have an impact.
"Al-Qaeda is more than (Osama) bin Laden.
On the other hand, he is the leader and ideologue and if (Osama)
bin Laden were to be captured or killed it would be I think
a significant blow to Al-Qaeda. Al-Qaeda exists somewhere
between a cult and mass movement. It's not a mass movement
and it's more than a cult."
American officials point out that - if alive
- the Al-Qaeda leader's ability to run his global organisation
has been severely curtailed.
That said, it is very hard for the US
to bill the war on terrorism as a success, without accounting
for the man portrayed from the outset as public enemy number
one.
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