DUBAI, July 15: Al Qaeda's fugitive chief Osama bin Laden appeared in an undated videotape posted on the Internet on Sunday, in which he praised martyrdom.

“The happy (person) is the one chosen by Allah to be a martyr,” Osama said in a short clip which was included in a videotape titled “Winds of Martyrdom”, and carried by the Washington-based SITE Intelligence Group.

SITE said the footage, which showed Osama outdoors against a background of a hill and shrubs, was old.

The US Senate on Friday doubled the bounty on bin Laden to 50 million dollars, reflecting frustration that the Al Qaeda mastermind remains free and rising anxiety over possible future attacks.—AFP