Bin Laden Proves the Hardier Prey
The Al Qaeda leader’s more inaccessible hide-out and loyal support help make him a tougher target for the U.S. than was Hussein. It was easier to capture Saddam Hussein alive than it would be to catch the Bush administration’s No. 1 fugitive, Osama bin Laden, U.S. officials said Sunday. Both Hussein and Bin Laden spent huge sums of money preparing to elude an American-led dragnet. But Bin Laden, who has hidden from U.S. forces for more than two years, has advantages that Hussein didn’t enjoy, according to U.S. officials and counter-terrorism experts. The Al Qaeda leader has an apparent hide-out deep within the recesses of a vast and lawless mountain range, and a network of supporters that is shadowy — and more loyal — than the one that supported Hussein, they said. Full Story