Cairo, Associated Press:  On Friday, today, Al Qaeda confirmed the killing of Osama bin Laden and warned of retaliation, saying, "Americans' happiness will turn to sadness."  The confirmation came in an internet statement posted on militant websites, signed by the general leadership of Al Qaeda.  The announcement opens the way for the group to name a successor to Bin Laden.  His deputy Ayman al-Zawahri is now the most prominent figure in the group and is a very likely contender to take his place.   The statement dated May 3rd, was the first by the terror network since Bin Laden was killed Monday by US commandos in a raid on his hideout in Abbottabad, Pakistan.  The statement's authenticity could not be independently confirmed, but it was posted on websites where the group traditionally puts out its messages.  "We stress that the blood of the holy warrior sheik, Osama bin Laden, God bless him, is precious to us and to all Muslims and will not go in vain," the statement said.  "We will remain, God willing, a curse chasing the Americans and their agents, following them outside and inside their countries.  Soon, God willing, their happiness will turn to sadness," it said. "Their blood will be mingled with their tears."  In their statement, Al-Qaeda also called on the people of Pakistan - "where sheik Osama was killed" - to rise up in revolt against its leaders.  It also said that an audio message Bin Laden recorded a week before his death would be issued soon.  

My Comments:  The Muslims awaited Mahdi is the one that Word of God refers to as the Antichrist of Revelation.  The Muslims who know about the Antichrist of the Bible will readily admit that they too believe the Antichrist of the Bible is their Mahdi (Messiah).  They see no reproach in this at all, since they believe that Jesus will return with their Mahdi, as a prophet of Allah and under the authority of Mahdi, to denounce the Bible and tell Christians and Jews that there is no God besides Allah.  They believe that He, Jesus, will then give Christians and Jews an opportunity to accept Allah, and if they don't, He will kill the Christians and Jews in the name of Allah.  Therefore, they too believe that their Mahdi is the Antichrist of the Bible, because their Mahdi is against the notion that Jesus is the Son of God, God in the flesh, absolutely!  Although I did not derive my belief regarding these facts from his book, A former PLO terrorist, Wallid Shoebat, recently wrote a book, "God's War on Terror," which I highly recommend.  Being a born again Christian, a converted Muslim who actually knows the Qu'ran and has inside knowledge of Islamic terrorist groups and their faith, has profound knowledge about end times prophecy from a Middle Eastern perspective, which is actually the only perspective to have.  Let's know this, prophecy begins and ends in the Middle East!  Read the book; you will never be the same and you will see the books of the prophets and Revelation clearly after you have read this book.  You can also go to Wallid Shoebat's website through the Links page of this website.