Voice on Qaeda message is bin Laden: U.S. official

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The CIA is confident that the voice is genuine in a message on Wednesday purported to be from al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, a U.S. intelligence official said on Thursday.

The official described the content of the message as "part of their ongoing propaganda campaign," and "well-worn" propaganda." He said he was not immediately able to describe when the message may have been recorded.

In the audio message posted on the Internet coinciding with the birth of Islam's founder, bin Laden threatened the European Union with grave punishment for publication of cartoons mocking the Prophet Mohammed.

"The CIA has done an analysis of it (the message) and it can be said with a high degree of confidence that it is in fact the voice of Osama bin Laden," the official said.

The White House said the tape appeared to show bin Laden was trying "to establish himself as relevant and posture himself as the defender of Muslims."

"At the same time his organization continues to specifically target, and lethally target, innocent men, women and children around the world and bring destruction and death to people everywhere who don't agree with their radical views," White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said.

(Reporting by Randall Mikkelsen and David Alexander, editing by Patricia Wilson)