Osama will be brought to justice soon: White House

WASHINGTON (Agencies) - As Osama bin Laden claimed responsibility for the botched Christmas Day US airline bombing, the White House on Sunday termed the Al-Qaeda chief a cowardly murderous thug and expressed hope that he would soon be brought to justice.
The White House also denounced Osama bin Laden and gave no indication that a new audio message purportedly by the Al-Qaeda leader had triggered heightened alarm about renewed attacks.
White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said nobodys had a chance to authenticate that tape, and he declined comment on whether the US believes Osama Laden played any role in the Christmas incident.
I think everybody in this world understands that this is somebody that has to pop up in our lives over an audiotape because hes nothing but a cowardly, murderous thug and terrorist that will someday, hopefully soon, be brought to justice, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs told the Fox News in an interview.
Justifying the decision to charge Nigerian Al-Qaeda operative Umar Farouq Abdulmutallab as a criminal defendant and not treat him as an enemy combatant, Gibbs said that decision was made by the Justice Department and the FBI, with experienced FBI interrogators.
Make no mistake. Abdulmutallab was interrogated and valuable intelligence was gotten as a result of that interrogation, he said responding to charges that his interrogation by high-value interrogation group would have yielded better results.
He was interrogated. Valuable intelligence was gotten based on those interrogations. I think the Department of Justice made the right decision, as did those FBI agents, Gibbs said.
Talking to the CNN, White House adviser David Axelrod told CNNs State of the Union that whatever the source, the message contains the same hollow justification for the mass slaughter of innocents.
State Department spokesman PJ Crowley said there appeared to be no special significance to the Osama tape beyond confirming the US view that he remains determined to serve as a catalyst for terrorist actions even as he and his senior lieutenants are limited in their ability to plan and direct attacks.