Osama escapes once more

LONDON: Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, the world's most wanted terrorist, has evaded capture by Pakistani troops by just 30 minutes as they zeroed in on him in a remote village close to the Afghan border, a media report claimed here on Sunday.

Data from a mobile phone used by one of bin Laden's closest aides helped the Pakistani troops to pinpoint his hideout but by the time they could mount a raid, the Al Qaeda chief had slipped away, News of the World reported.

Details of the operation earlier this year were revealed to American TV interviewer Daphne Barak by Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf, it said.

"It was in the spring. We acted on intelligence reports and were close. Such fleeting opportunities come and either you succeed in a moment or you fail and miss the opportunity for a long time," it quoted Musharraf as saying in Islamabad.

The Pakistani embassy in London confirmed this week: "We think we missed him (bin Laden) by 30 minutes. It was the closest we have been since 2001."

Bin Laden has not been seen in videos, issued by his terror network, for over a year and western intelligence agencies believe he may be dead.