Changing the face of Osama bin Laden

Osama bin Laden, the world's most wanted man, continues to frustrate the United States, which admits it does not know where he is hiding.

Now it is being suggested that the man blamed for masterminding the September 11 suicide attacks on New York and Washington has used cosmetic surgeons to transform his appearance and improve his prospects of eluding his pursuers in Afghanistan.

The forbidding terrain would seem to present few obstacles to suitably equipped specialists.

Experts say talented surgeons could do the the job in less than seven hours, using a suitcase of battery-powered gear, headlamps and local anaesthetics.

As a Beverly Hills doctor put it, "his own mother wouldn't recognise him".

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