Speaking of Terrorists . . .

GENEVA (Reuters) - Swiss authorities have ruled that a Geneva-based half-brother of al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden has the right to use the family name as a trademark.

But businessman Yeslam Bin Ladin said he had no immediate plans to bring out any goods under the name.

"I don't intend to exploit the brand Bin Ladin commercially for the time being, but registering it will prevent others from using my name to bad effect," the daily Tribune de Geneve quoted him as saying.

In July 2002 the Federal Intellectual Property Institute revoked the trademark which it had initially granted in August 2001 -- a month before al Qaeda launched suicide plane attacks on the United States that killed 3,000 people.

In revoking it, the Swiss authorities argued that the trademark could "morally wound" Swiss and disrupt public order.

But an appeals body, in a decision taken last June but only just published, said public order had not been disrupted and that trademarks should be revoked only in exceptional circumstances.

Pete's Points:

I guess that now that this name is once again under a trademark, when half brother Osama launches another attack on the West he will have to do so using only his given name or his half brother will sue him for breach of copyright.

What a good thing this would be. Western intelligence agencies would be able to follow the process server and arrest him at last. After all, they don't seem to be able to find him any other way!