Where's Waldo?

Now the author Richard Miniter suggests bin Laden is in Iran. Miniter's latest book is "Shadow War: The Untold Story of How Bush is Winning the War on Terror." It's been a best-seller on "The New York Times" best-sellers list.

And Richard Miniter is joining us now live.

Richard, thanks very much for joining us.

RICHARD MINITER, AUTHOR, "SHADOW WAR": Thanks, Wolf.

BLITZER: What makes you think -- what hard evidence is there in your mind that he may be in Iran right now?

MINITER: Well, the hard evidence is my two sources who are Iranian intelligence agents, who say that they saw bin Laden eyeball to eyeball inside Iran in a place called Najmabad on October 23, 2003.

These sources have proved reliable in the past to American and to British intelligence. The other things they've said have checked out. And so I think it's suggestive. It's at least opening the door. I make the case in chapter one of "Shadow War." But it's a case with a lot of caveats, as a lot of intelligence cases are.

BLITZER: Besides these two sources that you have, are there any others who would tend to believe that he might be in Iran right now that you've come upon or is it just these two sources?

MINITER: Well, for me, it's these two sources.

But let's look at what the Iranian government has said in their state-run broadcasts. They've admitted to more than 500 al Qaeda fighters being resident in their country. They've refused to let the United States, France, Saudi Arabia, or any Arab country interrogate them or even visit them. They've said also said that Saad bin Laden, Osama bin Laden's oldest son, is in their country. These are public statements by Iranian governmental officials.

BLITZER: There's another element that you've spoken about. And I want to show our viewers the videotape once again of what Osama bin Laden was wearing on that videotape that surfaced just before the U.S. presidential election.

Take a look at the robes he's wearing. What does it say to you? What have you heard based on this videotape?

MINITER: There are intelligence analysts who work for our government who specialize in identifying clothing and other particular markers. These videotapes are highly scrutinized.

And one of the things these analysts have told me is, those robes are very similar to, if not identical to, those worn by Shia clerics, that is to say, not the Sunni version of Islam followed by bin Laden, but the majority version of Islam followed in Iran, Shia cleric from the Mashhad region. That's in northeastern Iran.

BLITZER: Has there been any other videotape or photograph of Osama bin Laden that you know of wearing a similar kind of robe?

MINITER: I don't know of any similar ones.

BLITZER: Because, in the past, we've seen other outfits that he's wearing, but nothing like these gold robes. And what you're saying is, this is a robe that's typical of a certain part of northeastern Iran on the border with Afghanistan?

MINITER: And for people in a very particular role, the role of a cleric, a respected scholar of Islam, which bin Laden is in reality not. He's not a Shia, and he's not a scholar, but he's wearing the robes as if he is a scholar of that version of Islam.

BLITZER: And you've gotten this from U.S. intelligence or Iranian intelligence? MINITER: U.S. intelligence, Wolf.

BLITZER: Who have spent the last month studying this videotape?

MINITER: That's right.

BLITZER: Because we've been checking ourselves and we can't come across anyone, at least the sources that we've had so far, that seems to suggest, A, that he might be in Iran or, B, that the robe might be a signature item that could detect where this videotape was taken.

MINITER: Well, perhaps the robe is an attempt to send a signal that there is an emerging alliance between Iran and al Qaeda. Or maybe it's a false signal. Maybe it's a coincidence. Maybe the analysts are wrong. Look, this is a game of grays and shadows.

BLITZER: But your bottom line is, if you had to bet right now, you would think he's in Iran, not along the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

MINITER: Well, if I had a bet right now, I would say he most likely is in Iran, based on what the sources have told me and other indications that I've talked about with you now.

BLITZER: I spoke with Pat Roberts, the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, on Sunday. And he should know if the U.S. government knows. And he says he doesn't have a clue where Osama bin Laden is right now.

MINITER: Well, I don't think day to day anybody does. And, remember, this sighting is more than a year old. If I knew exactly where he was, I'd be racing out your studio door to collect $25 million.

BLITZER: And I assume that other people would know as well.

Richard Miniter is the author of "Shadow War: The Untold Story of How Bush is Winning the War on Terror."

Thanks very much.

MINITER: Thanks, Wolf.