Bin Laden bent on spectacular US attack until the end: files

WASHINGTON: Hunkered down in his Pakistani compound, Osama bin Laden pleaded with his followers to stay focused on attacking the United States instead of being dragged into Muslim infighting.

Documents that were declassified on Wednesday shed new light on the mindset of Al-Qaeda´s founder, his debates over tactics, his anxiety over Western spying and his fixation with the group´s media image.

"The focus should be on killing and fighting the American people and their representatives," the late Al-Qaeda figurehead wrote.

The letter was among thousands of files found by US Navy SEALs on May 2, 2011 when they descended on Bin Laden´s hideout in the Pakistani garrison town of Abbottabad and shot him dead.

US intelligence agencies have now declassified more than 100 of these documents taken from Bin Laden´s archive, after lawmakers ordered the move and critics accused the CIA of withholding material.

AFP was given exclusive access to the documents ahead of their release, and they have since been posted online by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

Jeff Anchukaitis, spokesman for the office, said the release of "a sizeable tranche of documents" was in line with President Barack Obama´s call for "increased transparency."

It was also in accordance with a law obliging the spy agencies to review all the Bin Laden material for possible release, he said.

The documents released are English translations of the originals, and AFP had no way to independently verify the materials or the accuracy of the translation.

The release came shortly after US journalist Seymour Hersh alleged that Washington´s official account of the hunt for Bin Laden and the raid that led to his death was a lie.

But CIA spokesman Ryan Trapani said the declassification had been planned for at least a year and had not been intended as a response to Hersh´s report.