A Christmas target

Pope is Bin Laden's Christmas target - ex-CIA chief

The Vatican's security advisor believes the Pope is the prime target ofOsama bin Laden.

Vince Cannistraro says bin Laden sees His Holiness as a symbolic head of thecrusaders.

The former CIA anti-terrorism chief says he fears a Christmas assassinationattempt.

Mr Cannistraro says the al-Qaida terror network will attempt an attackduring the festive season in revenge for the West's bombing of Afghanistanduring the muslim holy month of Ramadan.

"The Pope is the prime target because the US continued to bomb duringRamadan," Mr Cannistraro warns.

"He looks at the Pope as the symbolic head of the crusaders and a naturaltarget."

Terrorist experts believe an earlier plot on the Pope's life by Islamicextremists was foiled in 1995 when he visited the Philippines.

A spokesman for the Vatican told Ananova: "We never comment on the securityarrangements of the Pope."

Italy's Corriere della Sera newspaper says US Intelligence have uncoveredplans to assassinate John Paul II at least 3 times in the last five years.

Former US President Bill Clinton confirmed the failed plot in thePhilippines to kill the Pontiff by a kamikaze pilot crashing a small planeonto the Pope's car. The pilot had been trained in a flight school in theUS.

Story filed: 09:57 Thursday 22nd November 2001