“Al Jazeera broadcast a statement on Sunday [September 16, 2001] that it attributed to the world’s most wanted fugitive [bin Laden]. ‘I would like to assure the world that I did not plan the recent attacks, which seem to have been planned by people for personal reasons,’ read the message, whose authenticity was impossible to verify. ‘I have been living in the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan and following its leaders’ rules. The current leader [Mullah Mohammad Omar] does not allow me to exercise such operations.’ ”
– John F. Burns, “Pakistani Team Giving Afghans an Ultimatum,” The New York Times, Sep. 17, 2001