The videotape of Osama bin Laden apparently boasting about his role in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks is obviously authentic, George W. Bush said Friday.

The U.S. president accused skeptics of going to far-fetched lengths to defend the most-wanted man on earth.

"I mean, this is bin Laden unedited," Bush told reporters. "It's preposterous for anybody to think that this tape is doctored. That's just a feeble excuse to provide weak support for an incredibly evil man."

The U.S. will continue to hunt for bin Laden until he is caught "dead or alive," the president pledged.

"I don't know whether we're going to get him tomorrow or a month from now or a year from now. I don't really know. But we're going to get him," Bush said.

Some people challenge the White House's assertion that the videotape, released Thursday, proves bin Laden helped plan the hijackings that killed thousands of people. The recording shows only that he celebrated the devastating attacks, according to some people. Others have suggested the Americans hired someone to pretend to be the exiled Saudi.

"Those who contend it's a farce or a fake are hoping for the best about an evil man," Bush said.

The president debated whether to release the tape, which U.S. officials say was found in a house in Afghanistan, because of concern it would be too hard for relatives of the Sept. 11 victims to watch.

Many Arab newspapers Friday downplayed the video, offering only brief mentions of its existence in larger stories about Afghanistan. Some printed editorials complaining about the tape's poor sound and crummy camerawork, arguing that the recording raises more questions than it answers.