One interesting rumor had him in Iran.  It is interesting because members of his family have been confirmed inside Iran.  This would make an incredible story amidst the current Iranian nuclear crisis that is heating up to a boil  Iran is connected to Pakistan and Afghanistan and slipping over the border into Iran from Afghanistan and then into Pakistan would be a benefit to Osama bin Laden.  One thing I noticed when Iran stated that members of the bin Laden family were being held in Iran there was nothing released by Osama bin Laden or messages regarding the matter.  There is a lot of talk and misinformation about how Shia and Sunni sects do no get along.  This may be true in some instances but overall does not trump the hatred they share for America and the West.  Iran benefits greatly by a war in Afghanistan.  They are able to play a part in the killing of Americans by proxy.  They can make and supply weapons and explosives.  Iran enjoys a spread thin American military because it makes it more unlikely that America would engage with force in the Iran nuclear crisis that is unfolding. Your enemy is my enemy is something that we can not overlook in discovering where Osama bin Laden is.

December 2009  A Taliban detainee in Pakistan claims to have information about Osama Bin Laden's whereabouts in January or February of 2009.  He claims that in January or February he met a trusted contact who had seen Bin Laden about 15 to 20 days earlier in Afghanistan. "In 2009, in January or February I met this friend of mine. He said he had come from meeting Sheikh Osama, and he could arrange for me to meet him," he said."He helps al-Qaeda people coming from other countries to get to the sheikh, so he can advise them on whatever they are planning for Europe or other places.  "The sheikh doesn't stay in any one place. That guy came from Ghazni, so I think that's where the sheikh was."  The province of Ghazni is located in eastern Afghanistan has experienced an increasingly strong Taliban presence. 

We know that initially prior to the 911 attacks he was in Afghanistan enjoying the hospitality and admiration of the Taliban Militant group that took control over the majority of the country in 1996.  In that same year Osama bin Laden arrived in Afghanistan after residing previously in Sudan.  He was asked to leave Sudan after U.S. pressure was applied by the Clinton Administration.  911 was not al Qaeda's first terrorist attack by no means, just the deadliest.  On August 7, 1998, at 10:30 a.m. local time, two Embassies of the United States of America, located in the East African cities of Nairobi, Kenya and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, were attacked in coordinated truck bombings, later determined to have occurred approximately four minutes apart. In Nairobi, 213 people were killed in the blast, while 11 individuals died in the bombing at Dar es Salaam.

The Taliban supplied refuge and a base of operations for these activities to be planned and carried out.  The Taliban fell for bin Laden's view of how to deal with the rest of the world that did not accept the Taliban as the legitimate government of Afghanistan.  "Our prestige is spreading across the region because we have truly implemented Islam, and this makes the Americans and some neighbors very nervous," said Taliban Afghan Information Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi. That is putting it lightly. As militants from around the world flock to it for sanctuary  only increases its support for the wave of Talibanization it hopes to unleash on the region and beyond even today. 

The U.S. demanded the Taliban hand over Osama bin Laden after 911.  The Taliban leadership played cat and mouse with the United States until America attacked Afghanistan in October 2001.  Before we go into the latest sightings, speculations and reports of Where Osama bin Laden is, It is interesting to consider the following statement by Mullah Mohammed Omar, the leader of the Afghanistan Taliban who is being hunted in the same regions along the Afghanistan and Pakistan border areas as the hunt that is occurring for Osama bin Laden.  The two are unlikely together.  It is also unlikely that al Qaeda's number two Ayman Al Zawarhi is with bin Laden for obvious security and overall protection of the top leaders

Does He Live In Caves?  No he does not live in caves.  He is believed to be living in one of the interconnected large mud walled compounds that are prevalent in the area and the largest ones being owned by a local clan leader. 

Is He Always On The Run?  No, it is commonly accepted that he does not like to move often.  He is believed to stay for extended periods of time in a location.  The foreign al Qaeda members have taken wives and have married into the tribal areas and this has created a larger pool area for him to seek refuge in.  If he would continually be on the move he would be easier to find with drones and other methods.  It is believed that he only changes locations in the evening or at night after Evening Prayers.  The network of extended families that al Qaeda members have married into over the years has created an early warning system to keep him safe from troop movements and drones.

How is his health? As for his health, he is 50 years old, turning 51 (according to the best estimates) in July.  He does NOT have kidney failure and does NOT need dialysis.  He has had kidney stones.  He is also seen as somewhat of a hypochondriac. He is missing a toe, lost in a battle against the Soviets. He reportedly has an enlarged heart and chronically low blood pressure, which he treats with drugs.  There is even some dispute over his height.  Is he tall?  Yes.  Is he 6’5”?  Maybe not.  As one intelligence official told me, “If you see a guy who is 6’4” tall and looks like him, kill him.”

Is Osama bin Laden Surrounded By An Army?  His protection detail is believed to be controlled by his brother-in-law and believed to include Chechen and Uzbeks as well as Arabs.  The most important part of his protection is the monitoring of American, Afghanistan and Pakistani as well as other Coalition movements into areas where he is taking refuge.  When an area heats up as has happened in the past he will move locations well ahead of the manhunt.  If is whereabouts are discovered it is believed that there is sufficient firepower to enable time for an escape.