Osama's 'intriguing handwritten notes' on climate change, Saudi Arabia flash floods

London, June 30(ANI): Scraps of handwritten notes reportedly recovered from Osama bin Laden's lair in Abbottabad during the May 2 US raid suggest that he may have been writing and re-writing his speeches to while away time in the confines of his compound.

The BBC has obtained two pages of scribbled notes, written in red pen, that were allegedly found in the room next door to bin Laden's bedroom.

The authenticity of the notes cannot be independently verified, however, experts believe that this material is a draft of a speech or statement by the al-Qaeda leader, the report said.

Some portions are damaged by water, and sentences have been crossed out. But there are clear references to climate change and flash floods in Saudi Arabia- both topics were mentioned by bin Laden in a speech last year.

There is also criticism of the Saudi Royal family - another familiar theme for bin Laden - and advice on leadership.

Al-Qaeda expert Abdel Bari Atwan - who interviewed Bin Laden in 1996 - says he finds the material convincing.

The content is "typical bin Laden", according to Atwan, who believes the notes may have been written to coincide with flooding in Jeddah in western Saudi Arabia in December 2009.

"I believe it's genuine," he said. "I can tell from the language and the way it is written. Whether it was written by Osama bin Laden himself, or dictated by him to someone else, I don't know. But it has the fingerprint of Osama bin Laden's style."

A US authority on al-Qaeda, Professor Walid Phares, who advises the US Congress on counter-terrorism, also sees similarities to bin Laden's writings and those of Ayman al-Zawahiri, his former deputy who has now replaced him.

"I'm very intrigued by these documents. I wish we had more of them," he said.

However, BBC Middle East analyst Abdallah Alsalmi says the handwriting resembles that of a teenager, aged between 13 and 16 years old.

He believes that the writer could have been bin Laden's young daughter, who was said to have been with him in the compound, and to have witnessed his killing.

"It's likely that he was dictating his thinking as a way of passing the time," Alsalmi said. "He was living in the compound with no outside communications, nothing except his books and a TV set. It's likely that he was bored." (ANI)