Osama bin Laden

Osama bin Laden has been the leader of Al Qaeda since the group's formation in 1988, when the Soviets were withdrawing from Afghanistan. Bin Laden has served a lead role including managing the organization, as well as fundraising.

Background

See also: Bin Laden family

Osama bin Laden (aliases included Osama Muhammad al Wahad, Abu Abdallah, and Al Qaqa^[1][2]) was born on March 10, 1957 in Riyadh^[3] to Hamida al-Attas and Muhammed Awad bin Laden, a wealthy businessman in Saudi Arabia. The Bin Laden family traces back to the Hadhramaut region of Yemen, while his mother is from Syria. Osama was the 17th of 52 children.^[4]

Osama's mother, Hamida Ganem al-Attas (Alia), was one of Mohammed bin Laden's fourth wives. Alia was 14 at the time of the marriage, and they had one son together -- Osama, and then they divorced. After the divorce, Hamida married Mohammed al-Attas, who was a mid-level manager in the BinLaden Group.^[5] Together they had four children. Osama was raised by his mother and lived together with his four half-siblings.^[6] Mohammed provided places for his former wives to stay, so Osama was raised in Medina and the Hijaz, in Saudi Arabia. At some point, Alia, Attas, and Osama moved out of the Bin Laden complex and into a suburban home in Jeddah. As a child, Osama was shy, but he enjoyed activities including swimming, hunting, and horseback riding. Each summer, Alia took the family to Latakia in Syria, where they stayed with relatives. Around age 10, Osama was enrolled at Brummana, a boarding school in Lebanon, but he was there only briefly and returned to Saudi Arabia less than a year later.^[5]

Osama's father was a distant figure in Osama's live, and his father died in a plane crash when Osama was only 10 years old. Yet, Osama was very much inspired by his father for his achievements, including building the Grand Mosque in Mecca, and in Medina, as well as restoration work on the Dome of the Rock Mosque in Jerusalem.^[7] Osama attended Al Thagher Model School in Jeddah, and graduated in 1976. While at Al Thagher, Osama began participating in an after-school Islamic study group when he was 14 years old. At the time, Syrian and Egyptian teachers were commonplace in Saudi high schools and universities, many of whom were members of or influenced by the Muslim Brotherhood and other Islamist groups.^[8] At age 14, Osama stopped going to the movies and such, and he became much more religious.^[9]

Unlike most of his siblings, he decided against going overseas to continue his studies.^[10] Osama studied economics and management at King Abdul Aziz University. Contrary to media reports, Osama did not study engineering, and he did not complete his degree.^[11] Though, given what the family business was, Osama did take some civil engineering courses.^[12] In addition to economics and management, Osama also took Islamic studies. At university, he was taught by Abdullah Azzam and Muhammad Qutb, the brother of Sayyid Qutb who was the ideologue of Muslim Brotherhood. Both Azzam and Qutb had significant influence on Osama.^[11] During this time period, Osama was deeply devout. His brother, Abdulaziz remembers Osama "reading and praying all the time" during this period, as well as being very involved in theological debates, Koranic study, and other activities at university.^[13] Around 1976 or 1977, while at university, Osama read Sayyid Qutb's works including Signposts and In the Shade of the Koran, as well as Concepts That Should Be Corrected by Mohammed Qutb and works of Taqi Al-Din Ibn Taymiyya. Osama did not complete university, leaving early to become a manager in the family business where he was responsible for managing some renovation projects in the Mecca area.^[14]

Bin Laden came of age at a key time in Islam, with several momentous events occurring in 1979. Islamic fundamentalists seizure of the Grand Mosque in Mecca, the overthrow of the Shah in Iran by Ayatollah Khomeini, the cease-fire agreement between Egypt and Israel, and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan all occurred in 1979, and were influential events for Bin Laden.^[15]

Mujaheddin

When the Soviets invaded Afghanistan on December 26, 1979, the situation posed a threat to the Arab countries which feared the Communist reach coming closer. As well, Afghanistan was a Muslim country and many objected to the Soviet infidels invading and occupying a Muslim land. Furthermore, the war in Afghanistan led to a massive exodus of refugees into Pakistan. After the Soviet invasion, Saudi Arabia sought to support the resistance or "jihad" in Afghanistan by raising funds, as well as organizing humanitarian relief for the Afghan refuges in Pakistan. Within the royal Saudi family, Prince Salman and King Fahd were responsible for organizing assistance. Their approach was to set up fundraising committees in each region of Saudi Arabia, and have the local emir ask prominent families to appoint a family member to serve on the committee. The Bin Laden family was asked and they chose Osama, as he was the most religious.^[16]

At the time, Osama was working for the family construction company, and was working on the Mecca road extension project. After being appointed to the committee, Osama disappeared from the job and was gone a week or ten days. When he returned, Osama explained that he "flew to Pakistan on a Saudi Air Force C-130 with a load of blankets and canned food for the Afghans." Osama disappeared for a second time, and the third time, he said he was not coming back to work.^[17]

Bin Laden joined Abdullah Azzam in Pakistan to provide support for the Afghans who were resisting the Soviets. Azzam was an important influence for Bin Laden, introducing the concept of transnational jihad. Bin Laden reportedly donated some of his personal funds to the cause, and worked to recruit Arab volunteers. For the next several years, Osama traveled back and forth between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, bringing funds and holding meetings with Jamaat Islami, the Pakistani affiliate of the Muslim Brotherhood. Osama wanted to channel assistance through Jammat Islami, rather than Pakistan's ISI. Donors that Osama recruited included members of the Saudi government.^[18]

Initially, Bin Laden was only bringing funds to Pakistan for the Afghan mujahadeen. In 1982, Bin Laden stepped up his involvement by drawing on the expertise of his family's business in construction and engineering. Bin Laden was able to bring construction equipment and help build roads, shelters, tunnels, underground bunkers, and other infrastructure for the mujahadeen in Afghanistan.^[19] In 1984, Bin Laden further expanded his involvement by funding training camps for both Afghan and Arab volunteers. The first camp built was in the Patkia Province, near Jaji. In addition to military training, Bin Laden also included Islamic theology as part of the training.^[20]

Maktab al-Khadamat

In September 1984, Bin Laden and Azzam met while they were in Mecca, where they decided to take on a greater role of responsibility in helping Arab mujahaddin. At the time, the number of Arabs fighting in Afghanistan was small, and the two men wanted to change that. In Peshawar, they established the Maktab al-Khadamat (Afghan Services Bureau or MAK), which would provide assistance to Arabs coming to join the jihad. Bin Laden pledged financial support, offering to provide a plane ticket, a place to stay, as well as living expenses for each Arab that came, as well as his family. Bin Laden also provided $25,000 each year to keep the office operating in Peshawar.^[21]

Azzam's idea was for the Maktab al-Khadamat was for it to function similarly to an Islamic charity, as well as employ marketing techniques to spread the message about jihad. Azzam's projects with the Maktab al-Khidamat included creating and publishing the Al-Jihad magazine. Osama established committees within the Maktab al-Khadamat including one for media operations, and another for education.^[18] The Maktab al-Khadamat established offices in the Arab world, as well as Europe and the United States for the purpose of recruiting and fundraising.^[22] The office in Peshawar provided organizational and financial support, weapons, training, and other aid to the volunteer fighters. A guest house, Beit al-Ansar, provided room and board for new volunteers.^[23] Bin Laden used family contacts and money to support a the plan developed by Azzam to create an international jihad organization. The Maktab al-Khadamat was a predecessor of Al Qaeda.^[24] Bin Laden also established a guesthouse in Peshawar, called Beit al-Ansar, which was a place for Arab mujahadeen fighters to stay.^[25]

Bin Laden initially devoted time to fundraising, which he was successful at. He could easily talk to wealthy people and convince them to contribute to jihad, and he was wealthy enough himself that donors considered him honest and above "skimming off" the proceeds. Bin Laden also convinced his family's construction firm to send engineers and equipment to build tunnels, underground hospitals, arms depots, and other military fortifications along the Afghan-Pakistan border. In Peshawar, Bin Laden "was remembered for assiduously visiting the wounded, handing out excellent English chocolates, taking down names and hometowns and making sure the families received both news and cash." Bin Laden and Azzam met regularly with Prince Turki al-Faisal (head of Saudi Intelligence) when he came to check on progress of the jihad.^[26] When Osama's eldest brother Salem came to visit, Salem brought his video camera, so Osama took the opportunity to show him the orphanages.^[18]

In early 1986, Bin Laden was still splitting time between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. Azzam contacted Bin Laden at this point to persuade him to move to Peshawar, explaining that there were administrative and financial problems in the Maktab al-Khadamat. Osama and his family moved later that year to Peshawar, where they lived in the Hyatabad section of the city. For the first time, Bin Laden sought publicity for his work, to boost his reputation back in Saudi Arabia and elsewhere in the Muslim world.^[27] When Bin Laden arrived, he found the Arab volunteer movement and the Maktab al-Khadamat in some disarray. At this time, Ayman al-Zawahiri had arrived in Peshawar from Egypt along with other radical Egyptian exiles.^[28]

Jaji

Towards the end of the 1980s, Bin Laden became involved on the battlefield. In May 1986, Osama traveled into Afghanistan where he and other Arab mujahadeen joined a group of Afghan mujahaddin in Jaji. While there, the Russian bombarded the area, with bombs in the distance, mines laid in the area, and a missile hit not so far away. The Afghans found the group of Arabs to be "useless" and asked them to leave. Toward the end of 1986, Osama established a separate camp, also in Jaji, for Arab mujahaddin. Azzam quarreled with Bin Laden over the idea of separating the Arab mujahaddin fighters from the Afghans.^[21]

Since Osama was now interested in creating his own jihadist militia, he approached his brother Salem for help in obtaining weapons such as portable anti-aircraft missiles. His brother made an effort to contact the Pentagon for assistance, but was unable to find his way through the bureaucracy. He ended up instead going through the private arms market to obtain weapons, with his contacts able to obtain Russian-made SA-7 shoulder-fired missiles and ammunition for Chinese-made AK-47 rifles from a source in South America, as well as some weapons from South African arms dealers. Some of the money for the purchase possibly came from the Saudi government for purchase of the weapons.^[28]

In 1987, Bin Laden was spending time other Arab volunteers near Jaji in Afghanistan where, in April/May 1987, they withstood an onslaught from the Soviets for more than ten days. The Lion's Den Operation (Battle of Jaji), in the Afghan province of Paktia, was a important battle. The mujahaddin were well-equipped with Stinger missiles, which they used to shoot down Soviet helicopters. After a week, the Soviets retreated and the mujahaddin victory was widely reported in the Arab press. In an interview with CNN journalist Peter Arnett, Osama said he was exposed to poison gas attacks and suffered minor injuries during the 1987 operation.^[29] The extent of Osama's involvement is most likely exaggerated, as the earliest known descriptions of the battle in Azzam's Al-Jihad publication do not mention Bin Laden's role in the battles. But, Osama saw this as an opportunity for story-telling, and he began telling of his experiences in the battle to journalists.^[30]

Azzam and Bin Laden split

In 1986-87, Bin Laden explored the idea of establishing separate training camps for non-Afghans, which was something that Azzam disagreed with. Azzam wanted to keep putting the Arab recruits in with Afghan mujahadeen units. The two quarreled over this issue, but they both remained cordial. Azzam had built up extensive fundraising and recruitment operations in the United States, Europe, and elsewhere. At this point, Osama began emerging as a leader.^[30][31]

By the end of the 1980s, the Soviets withdrew from Afghanistan. As the Soviets were retreating in defeat, bin Laden and Azzam had discussions about the future of MAK and what to do with the mujahidin force that had built up. Osama and Azzam both wanted to use the force as a "rapid reaction force" to defend oppressed Muslims around the world. He wanted to train the Egyptian mujahidin in terrorist tactics; Azzam strongly disagreed with this approach, issuing a fatwa saying that it would violate Islamic law. Azzam reiterated the hadith that orders Muslims not to kill any women or children.^[32]

At the same time he was supporting Azzam's Maktab al-Khadamat, Osama was also supporting a rival group consisting of radical Egyptian exiles, led by Ayman al-Zawahiri. Osama's view was that all were welcome to participate in jihad, while Azzam held to the Muslim Brotherhood tradition "to recruit elite and talented followers, and train them in the Brotherhood tradition" which he thought produced a better group of volunteers. Osama, with not much formal education, may have also felt Azzam to be condescending.^[33]

Al Qaeda formed

In August 1988, Osama bin Laden organized meetings in Peshawar about the future, having already invested in the young mujaheddin. Bin Laden had gained a lot from marketing the jihad, with strong support from people in Saudi Arabia. At a second meeting, proposed a new approach, taking into account missteps in Azzam's organization. Osama wanted to train a "separatist Arab militia," using weapons he had acquired and he would set up camps which he would call القاعدة العسكرية ("al qaeda al-askariya" or the military base). In Al Qaeda, Osama emphasized diversity and inclusion, provided finances and his management skills, and he was interested in "technologies of global integration." These aspects of Al Qaeda distinguished it from other militant Islamist groups.^[33]

In encouraging diversity and inclusion, the number of Arab mujahaddin coming to Afghanistan increased sharply beginning in 1987. The new recruits were of a different type than those who came before, recruited by Azzam:

“

They were “men with large amounts of money and boiling emotions,” an al-Qaeda diarist noted. Pampered kids from the Persian Gulf came on excursions, staying in air-conditioned cargo containers; they were supplied with RPGs and Kalashnikovs, which they could fire into the air, and then they could return home, boasting`of their adventure. Many of them were newly religious high school or university students with no history and no one to vouch for them. Chaos and barbarism, which always threatened to overwhelm the movement, sharply increased as bin Laden took the helm.[34] -- Wright, Lawrence - The Looming Tower

”

On November 24, 1989, soon after bin Laden and Azzam split, Azzam was killed in Peshawar. Azzam and his two sons were travelling to Jummah (Friday prayer) when a remote-control activated bomb detonated and killed them.^[35] It is not known for certain if Osama was behind this, but thought unlikely. It is possible that the Egyptian radical rivals were behind the attack, but the culprit is not known for certain.^[33] Nonetheless, with Azzam out of the picture, Osama was free to take full control of the Makhtab al-Khadamat. Osama could begin laying groundwork for Al Qaeda.^[35]

At this point, Bin Laden did not have firm plans for going forward. Ahmed Badeeb, a former high school teacher, friend, and leader in Saudi intelligence, urged Bin Laden to come back to Saudi Arabia. Badeeb wanted to thin out the Saudi presence in Pakistan. This also was an important time, after the death of Salem Bin Laden, when the family businesses were being reorganized. It was important for Bin Laden to be present at that time.^[33]

Return to Saudi Arabia

Osama ended up leaving Pakistan, returning to Jeddah as a member of the Bin Laden family in good standing. Although he left Pakistan, Osama provided funds and technology for the Al Qaeda group and their training camps to keep going. At this stage, Al Qaeda was largely a fundraising network, more so than a militia. Fundraising was something that Bin Laden could work on while in Jeddah. Osama remained involved in media propaganda projects, financing the Egyptian filmmaker Essam Deraz who had filmed Bin Laden on the battlefield in Jalalabad, and casting himself as an Islamic warrior.^[33]

Bin Laden's relationship with the Saudi royals was changing, begining in late 1989 when Bin Laden provided financial support to Islamist rebels in the south of Yemen, which was contrary to Saudi foreign policy. Then, when Iraq invaded Kuwait, the Saudi royals welcomed military support from the Americans--something that outraged Osama bin Laden. He had offered to help protect the Saudi kingdom from the Iraqi invaders, but was rebuffed. Bin Laden's relationship with his family also was changing. The Saudi BinLaden Group developed friendship with Chas Freeman, the U.S. ambassador in Saudi Arabia, and won contracts with the U.S. Army to build military facilities in Saudi Arabia during the Persian Gulf War. Meanwhile, with the growing schisms between the Saudis and Osama bin Laden, Saudi officials seized Osama's passport during the winter of 1990-1991.^[36]

After the American-led coalition swiftly defeated the Iraqi forces, Saudi officials sought revenge on governments, including Jordan, the Palestinian Authority, and Yemen that supported Saddam Hussein, as well as individuals. Saudi officials expelled tens of thousands of Yemeni and Palestinian workers from the Kingdom. The exact circumstances of Osama's departure are unknown, but he left Saudi Arabia two months after the end of the Persian Gulf War.^[36]

Sudan

By 1991, Afghanistan was experiencing civil war. Osama bin Laden was looking at other places to send Al Qaeda members. While in Jeddah, he sent people to Sudan from Afghanistan to rent farms and guesthouses. He also used funds donated by an Egyptian lawyer to buy a farm north of Khartoum. Bin Laden also looked at opportunities to bring people to the south of Yemen. Bin Laden also had some ties to the United Arab Emirates, which he explored as a potential base for media and fundraising operations.^[37]

On May 1, 1991, Bin Laden moved to the Sudan, under invitation of Hassan Turabi, leader of Sudan's ruling National Islamic Front (NIF). When he came to Sudan, Bin Laden paid for 480 Afghan veterans to come to Sudan from Pakistan where the Pakistani officials threatened to expel them. While in Sudan, Bin Laden financed three training camps in northern Sudan, and he supported terrorist operations including a 1993 attack in Yemen. Bin Laden also took credit for the 1993 assault on American troops at Mogadishu in Somalia, but how much of that is true remains unknown.^[38]

While in Sudan, Bin Laden also established businesses and provided support to Sudan including undertaking development projects. Osama made business investments there, including the $180,000 purchase of a salt farm near Port Sudan.^[37] Another such project was construction of a 750-mile highway from Khartoum to Port Sudan.^[38] The Saudi Bin Laden Group also had activities in Sudan, including construction of a new airport in Port Sudan.^[37]

In late 1991 or mid-1992, Bin Laden relocated permanently with his family to Khartoum, the capital of Sudan. In 1992, when war broke out in Bosnia, Osama sent Afghan mujahaddin veterans armed with weapons to join the fight. While Osama was in Sudan, members of his family did visit him on a number of occasions, pleading with him to return to Saudi Arabia, make amends with Saudi officials, and abandon the "path of political opposition and exile." Some members of his family say they believed Osama was involved in legitimate business activity and not involved in "terrorist or violent activities." But, it was clear to Ahmed Badeeb (top member of Saudi intelligence) that Osama was involved "one way or another in these things, such as terrorist operations in Egypt and Libya."^[37]

Months after the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, the Committee for the Defense of Legitimate Rights, an Islamist group seeking political reform, was established in Saudi Arabia. There is no clear evidence that Bin Laden was involved, but he became a target of the Saudi government. On June 16, 1993, Bakr Bin Laden, the head of the Bin Laden family firms initiated action to remove Osama as a shareholder which was a process that took until the end of 1993. The action was likely done under pressure from the Saudi government. Osama's share which amounted to approximately $10 million was placed in a trust and frozen, and he was cut off from any dividend payments. In February 1994, the Bin Laden family publicly disowned Osama, "we consider him to be alone responsible for his statements, actions, and behavior, if truly emanating from him." In April 1994, Saudi officials revoked Osama's citizenship.^[37]

For harboring Bin Laden, the U.S. State Department placed Sudan on its list of countries that sponsor terrorist activities in 1993.^[38] While in Sudan, Bin Laden worked loosely together with Ayman al-Zawahiri and radical Egyptian members of al-Jihad. In 1995, Zawahiri and his organization were behind a number of plots against the Egyptian government, including an attempt on June 26, 1995 to assassinate Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak while he was visiting Ethiopia. Sudanese leader Hassan Turabi ordered al-Zawahiri and al-Jihad to leave Sudan. In April 1996, international sacntions against Sudan were imposed. With international pressure mounting, the Sudanese forced Bin Laden out of Sudan.^[39]

Afghanistan

On May 18, 1996, Bin Laden left for Afghanistan, returning to Jalalabad. Bin Laden setup shop in a cave in Tora Bora, which was a former ammunitions storage cavern that he had built in the 1980s. The Taliban had some concerns about Bin Laden, and did not want him to carry out "subversive activities" against other countries. At the same time, the Taliban was interested in financial support and expertise that Bin Laden could offer to Afghanistan. Having been forced out of the Sudan, Bin Laden was at a low point. Despite perceptions of him being wealthy, Bin Laden had been running into financial problems.^[39]

Bin Laden felt that he was becoming a symbol and "representative of all persecuted and humiliated Muslims," and he felt empowered to speak on their behalf. He decided to do this by declaring war on the United States, which came on August 23, 1996 in a message, "Declaration of War Against the Americans Occupying the Land of the Two Holy Places." Bin Laden gave the declaration from the cave, which is a place that evoked symbolism of Muslim oppression by modernity and the West, and reminiscent of the cave where the Prophet Mohammed encountered angel Gabriel.^[39]

It was soon after Bin Laden arrived in Tora Bora, when Khalid Sheikh Mohammed came to visit. Bin Laden may have been acquainted with Khalid Sheikh Mohammed from their time in Afghanistan in the 1980s, but Bin Laden was well-aware of the plots carried out by his nephew, Ramzi Yousef. Mohammed told Bin Laden about what he and Yousef had been involved with in the Philippines, and plot ideas they came up with. Mohammed and Yousef came up with the idea for "Operation Bojinka", which was a plan to bomb twelve American planes over the Pacific. Yousef had tested this on a flight from the Philippines to Japan, which killed a Japanese man and nearly brought the plane down. Another idea that Mohammed had was to crash airplanes into buildings in the United States, using pilot-trained hijackers. Bin Laden did not commit to this idea at the time, but this plot was later developed into the September 11th attacks.^[39]

Bin Laden's declaration of war sparked significant attention from the international news media, which in turn raised concerns among the Taliban. Thus, the Taliban came to meet with Bin Laden once again, telling him that "he would be welcome to remain under their protection," so long as Bin Laden did not attack inside Afghanistan, nor against Saudi Arabia, and that Bin Laden would not talk to the press. Bin Laden agreed, but then he quicklly broke the agreement by granting an interview to CNN in March 1997.^[40]

After that interview, Mullah Omar had Bin Laden come to a meeting in Kandahar, where Omar demanded that Bin Laden move from Jalalabad to Kanadahar where they keep an eye on him. Omar offered Bin Laden accommodations at Tarnak Farms, an abandoned agricultural compound. His family and supporters soon all arrived in Kandahar. After some time, the Taliban agreed to let Bin Laden re-establish his training camp in Khost and other places in Afghanistan. In the Spring of 1997, Zawahiri decided to join up with Bin Laden in Afghanistan. Abu Hafs, another Egyptian, was appointed as military chief of Al Qaeda.^[40] Along with Zawahiri, Mohammed Atef also joined Al Qaeda, with the Egyptian Islamic Jihad group essentially merging with Al Qaeda.

On February 23, 1998, the London-based newspaper Al-Quds al-Arabi published a new fatwa from Bin Laden and al-Zawahiri. In it, Bin Laden and al-Zawahiri called their alliance the "International Islamic Front for Jihad Against Jews and Crusaders".^[40] The declaration gained a great deal of international publicity for Al Qaeda, leading to a surge in donations as well as new recruits.^[41] During that time period, Bin Laden also granted a number of interviews with western journalists, including Peter Bergen and Peter Arnett from CNN, and John Miller from ABC News.

In the 1998 interview with John Miller, Bin Laden explained and alluded to future attacks within the United States:

“

The American government is leading the country towards hell. ... We say to the Americans as people and to American mothers, if they cherish their lives and if they cherish their sons, they must elect an American patriotic government that caters to their interests not the interests of the Jews. If the present injustice continues with the wave of national consciousness, it will inevitably move the battle to American soil, just as Ramzi Yousef and others have done.[42]

”

After 9/11

Three weeks following the 9/11 attacks, Bin Laden held a brief meeting with the Taliban's leader, Mullah Mohamed Omar on September 30. In the meeting, they discussed how they would respond to the assault by American, British, and other international forces. Omar reaffirmed his support for Bin Laden, and they agreed to "jointly resist any aggression, they would work to create and exploit divisions in the coalition ranged against them, and they would exploit the humanitarian crisis and any civilian casualties to create global anger against the bombing campaign."^[43]

Ideology

When the Ottoman Empire (Turkey) was dissolved at the end of World War I, the Turks ended up with only what is now Turkey. In 1924, Turkey officially eliminated the Caliphate, which provided leadership to all of the Islamic world since the time of Muhammad. At the same time the Caliphate was abolished, numerous political states (countries) were setup by the British and French. Bin Laden's overarching goal is to restore the Caliphate.^[44]

Bin Laden has been greatly influenced by a number of elders, including Abdullah Azzam who expanded the idea of jihad, as well as Ayman al-Zawahiri who further radicalized Bin Laden. In university, Bin Laden studied under Mohammed Qutb, the brother of influential Muslim Brotherhood member Sayyid Qutb. Bin Laden also frequently quotes from the 13th century Islamic scholar, Ibn Taimiyyah.

Bin Laden views his "struggle" as part of a war of religions, with Islam against the west or the "infidels" — a war that has continued for centuries. With the Soviet Union defeated, Bin Laden now sees the United States as a primary enemy.^[44] Bin Laden sees many aspects of U.S. foreign policy that put it at odds with the Middle East, with U.S. involvement in the Middle East and other areas of the world, representing a new crusade. That the United States has used its power to impose its view — democracy, capitalism, etc., that, in Bin Laden's view, the United States sees others as inferior, and through exercise of military power, the United States has inflicted high numbers of civilian casualties. In his statements, Bin Laden often brings up the example of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, as well as suffering and deaths of Muslim children.^[45]

Bin Laden is opposed to involvement by the United States in Middle East affairs, including involvement in Lebanon in the early 1980s. The Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in 1990 marked a point where bin Laden turned his attention more directly toward the United States. He strongly urged the Saudi regime not to host the 500,000 American troops, instead advocating the use of a mujahidin force to oust the Iraqis. Bin Laden strongly opposed the continued presence of American troops (infidels) in Saudi Arabia. He interpreted the Prophet Muhammad as banning the "permanent presence of infidels in Arabia".^[46] It should also be noted that the date chosen for the 1998 African embassy bombings (August 7), was eight years to the day that American troops were sent to Saudi Arabia.^[47] In the early 1990s, Bin Laden openly "criticized the Saudi royal family publicly and alleged that their invitation of foreign troops to the Arabian peninsula constituted an affront to the sanctity of the birthplace of Islam and a betrayal of the global Islamic community."^[48] Bin Laden has viewed the House of Saud (royal family) as apostates.^[46] In Islam, apostasy refers to Muslims that have become non-believers and reject Islam. Apostasy is a very serious charge, which may result in capital punishment in many Muslim countries (especially for males).

Bin Laden also views Israelis as infidels, not welcome in "Muslim land". And, he objects to U.S. foreign policy, in regards to Israel. Madeline Albright, Sandy Berger, and William Cohen (all Jewish) "drove Washington's undoubtedly pro-Israel policy" during the Clinton administration.^[49] What happened in Lebanon in 1982 also left a mark on Bin Laden, with him later explaining:

“

When America permitted the Israelis to invade Lebanon and the American Sixth Fleet helped them, blood and severed limbs, women and children sprawled everywhere. Houses destroyed along with their occupants and high rises demolished over their residents... The situation was like a crocodile meeting a helpless child, powerless except for his screams." This scene provoked an intense desire to fight tyranny, he said, and a longing for revenge. "As I looked at those demolished towers in Lebanon, it entered my mind that we should punish the oppressor in kind and that we should destroy towers in America in order that they taste some of what we tasted."[50] -- Wright, Lawrence - The Looming Tower

”

Aside from U.S. military involvement in the Middle East, Bin Laden also resents that the United States provide support to the "apostate" regimes in not only Saudi Arabia, but also in Egypt, Jordan, and other places. In the view of Bin Laden, these regimes, particularly Egypt and Jordan, have betrayed Muslims by making agreements with Israel. He also sees these regimes, including Saudi Arabia, as corrupt. Bin Laden sees Saudi Arabia as willing to sell its natural resources (oil) at prices determined by politics rather than market prices. Saudi Arabia and other regimes are also highly corrupt, taking vast amounts of money for themselves, while substantial portions of the population remain very poor. Bin Laden see the United States as an enemy for "propping up these puppet governments."^[51] When Bin Laden returned from Afghanistan to Saudi Arabia in 1989, Bin Laden expressed his belief that the west, in particular the United States, was to blame for the "humiliating failure of the Arabs to succeed" in the modern world.^[52] In Bin Laden's view, these regimes serve as "agents for the United States and Israel."^[53]

As well, Bin Laden objects to these governments instituting any laws other than those dictated under sharia (Islamic) law. In 1996, Bin Laden said in Al-Quds Al-Arabi:

“

We firmly believe that the [Saudi] regime has passed numerous laws without referring to God and appointed itself as a lawmaker and a co-lawmaker with God. This is unbelief as endorsed by the Ulema and the Book of Almighty God, 'He does not share His command with anyone.'[53]

”

Since Bin Laden thinks that Islam is under attack by U.S.-led "crusaders," his view is that defensive jihad is necessary. Seen as a religious struggle, Bin Laden is willing to fight and die a martyr, "I'm fighting so I can die a martyr and go to heaven to meet God. Our fight now is against the Americans. I regret having lived until now. I have nothing to lose."^[54] In August 1996, Bin Laden issued his "Declaration of Jihad," calling on Muslims to join and support the "cause," which Bin Laden portrays as a religious duty. Once again, Bin Laden reiterated the call for jihad in his 1998 fatwa.^[55]

Fatwas

Main article: Fatwas

In 1996, Bin Laden issued a fatwa, calling for American troops to get out of Saudi Arabia.

Bin Laden issued another fatwa in February 1998, together with Ayman al Zawahiri, declaring war against Americans. Abu Yasir Rifa'i Ahmad Taha (leader of the Egyptian Islamic Group), Mir Hamzah (secretary of the Jamiat ul Ulema e Pakistan), and Fazlul Rah-man (head of the Jihad Movement in Bangladesh) also signed the 1998 fatwa.

Bin Laden cited grievances including:

• Presence of American infidels (troops) in the Saudi holy land
• Suffering of Iraqi people due to sanctions imposed after the Gulf War
• U.S. support of Israel

Bin Laden also stated in the fatwa:

The ruling to kill the Americans and their allies -- civilians and military -- is an individual duty for every Muslim who can do it in any country in which it is possible to do it, in order to liberate the al-Aqsa Mosque and the holy mosque [Mecca] from their grip, and in order for their armies to move out of all the lands of Islam, defeated and unable to threaten any Muslim. This is in accordance with the words of Almighty God, "and fight the pagans all together as they fight you all together," and "fight them until there is no more tumult or oppression, and there prevail justice and faith in God."^[56]

In Bin Laden's words

In a 1998 interview with CNN journalist Peter Arnett and Peter Bergen, Osama bin Laden explained:

“

If the American government is serious about avoiding the explosions inside the U.S., then let it stop provoking the feelings of 1.2 billion Muslims.[57]

”

In a 1998 interview with Rahimullah Yosufzai, Bin Laden explained:

“

We declared jihad against the U.S. government because the U.S. government is unjust, criminal and tyrannical. It has committed acts that are extremely unjust, hideous and criminal whether directly or through its support of the Israel occupation of the Prophet's Night Travel Land (Palestine).[57]

”

“

“America went to Vietnam, thousands of miles away, and began bombing them in planes. The Americans did not get out of Vietnam until after they suffered great losses. Over sixty thousand American soldiers were killed until there were demonstrations by the American people. The Americans won’t stop their support of Jews in Palestine until we give them a lot of blows. They won’t stop until we do jihad against them.”[50] -- words of Bin Laden, to people in his hometown in ~1990.

”

During a 1998 interview with ABC's John Miller, Bin Laden reiterated, "We do not have to differentiate between military or civilian. As far as we are concerned, they [Americans] are all targets."^[58]

In a December 1999 interview with Rahimullah Yusufzai, bin Laden reiterated his ideology and objecting to America's military presence in Saudi Arabia and that Americans were "too near to Mecca. That was a provocation to the entire Muslim world."^[59] He also believed Israel "was killing and punishing Palestinians with American money and American arms."^[59]

Interviews with Bin Laden

Pre 9/11

Main article: Osama bin Laden interviews

During the late 1990s, several journalists interviewed Bin Laden in Afghanistan including:

• December 1993 - Interview with Robert Fisk (Independent, UK)
• May 1996 - Time Magazine, interview with Scott MacLeod in the Sudan^[60]
• July 10, 1996 - Interview with Robert Fisk, of the Independent, UK
• October/November 1996 - Nida’ul Islam, a magazine based in Australia, published an interview in late 1996. The interview was published as part of an article entitled "The Islamic Legitimacy of the Martyrdom Operations" (English translation).^[61]
• November 27, 1996 - Interview with Al Quds Al Arabi, a Palestinian daily. The interview was conducted from Bin Laden's command center, a cave outside of Kandahar. Abdelhari Atwan, the paper's editor, described how the cave, was equipped with a computer and a library of handsomely bound volumes.^[38]
• March 1997 - Interview with CNN reporter, Peter Bergen, Peter Arnett, and cameraman Peter Jouvenal. ^[62]
• 1997 - BBC "Dispatches" program
• May 1998 - Interview with Rahimullah Yusufzai, journalist with The News in Peshawar.^[63]
• June 10, 1998 - Interview with John Miller, ABC News
• December 1998 - Second interview with Rahimullah Yusufzai^[63]
• December 24, 1998 - Second interview with John Miller, ABC News.
• 1999 - Interview with Jamal Isma'il, of Al Jazeera

Post 9/11

Al Jazeera correspondent, Taysir Alouni interviewed Bin Laden in late October 2001. (Spain later indicted Alouni for providing money to al-Qaeda.) This interview was the first occasion that Bin Laden publicly linked himself to the September 11th attacks.^[64]

Alouni asked Bin Laden, "America claims that it has proof that you are behind what happened in New York and Washington. What's your answer?"^[64]

Bin Laden replied:

“

They [the hijackers] did this, as we understand it, and this is something we have agitated for before, as a matter of self-defense, in defense of our brothers and sons in Palestine, and to liberate our sacred religious sites/things. If inciting people to do that is terrorism, and if killing those who kill our sons is terrorism, then let history be witness that we are terrorists.[65]

”

Hamid Mir, a Pakistani journalist, met with Bin Laden two months after 9/11. Mir later described the ordeal, "I was blindfolded," he told me, "and they gave me some pills, and I was unconscious after that. When I woke up, it was the morning of the eighth of November. I have some impression that the place where he gave the interview was not far away from Kabul. They took me into a mud house, and I was surrounded by armed Arabs. 'Welcome! Welcome!' they said as I entered."^[64]

When Mir asked how he could justify the killing of so many civilians, bin Laden replied:

“

America and its allies are massacring us in Palestine, Chechnya, Kashmir, and Iraq. The Muslims have the right to attack America in reprisal … The September eleven attacks were not targeted at women and children. The real targets were America's icons of military and economic power."[64]

”

Al Qaeda video and audiotapes

Main article: Al Qaeda videos and statements

Prior to September 11

• Prior to the bombing of the U.S.S. Cole in 2000, Osama bin Laden appeared in a video tape.

December 2001

A video recovered from a home in Jalalabad, in November, and made public on December 13, 2001, shows Bin Laden talking to a group of supporters. Al Qaeda likely did not intend for this tape to be disseminated.

In the tape, he explains:

“

"We calculated in advance the number of casualties from the enemy who would be killed based on the position of the tower. We calculated that the floors that would be hit would be three or four floors. I was the most optimistic of them all. (...Inaudible...) Due to my experience in this field, I was thinking that the fire from the gas in the plane would melt the iron structure of the building and collapse the area where the plane hit and all the floors above it only. This is all that we had hoped for."

”

The videotape indicates that five days before the attacks, which occurred on a Tuesday, bin Laden knew the date and time they would occur:

“

"We had notification since the previous Thursday that the event would take place that day. We had finished our work that day and had the radio on. It was 5:30 p.m. our time [8:00 am in New York and Washington]. ... Immediately, we heard the news that a plane had hit the World Trade Center. We turned the radio station to the news from Washington. The news continued and no mention of the attack until the end. At the end of the newscast, they reported that a plane just hit the World Trade Center. ... After a little while, they announced that another plane had hit the World Trade Center. The brothers who heard the news were overjoyed by it. ..."

”

Bin Laden knew there would be multiple attacks:

“

"They were overjoyed when the first plane hit the building, so I said to them: be patient. The difference between the first and the second plane hitting the towers was twenty minutes. And the difference between the first plane and the plane that hit the Pentagon was one hour."

”

The video indicates that bin Laden was very familiar with the operational planning for the attacks:

“

"Mohammad Atta from the Egyptian family (meaning the Al Qaeda Egyptian group), was in charge of the group. ... The brothers, who conducted the operation, all they knew was that they have a martyrdom operation and we asked each of them to go to America but they didn't know anything about the operation, not even one letter. But they were trained and we did not reveal the operation to them until they are there and just before they boarded the planes. ... Those who were trained to fly didn't know the others. One group of people did not know the other group."

”

Expert analysis

Peter Bergen, who has interviewed Bin Laden and authored several books about him, commented about the video:

“

You know, and simple explanations are the best ones. There will always be conspiracy theories about these kinds of things. But they're just conspiracy theories. This was obviously a kind of casual moment. I have seen tapes similar to this during the Afghan war against the Soviet Union, Bin Laden sort of sitting around kibbitzing with his friends. It has all of the hallmarks of authenticity to me.[66]

”

2002

• April 2002 - Flight 93 hijacker Ahmed al-Haznawi was shown in a video reciting a prepared statement, which al-Jazeera described as a last will and testament.^[67]

• April 24, 2002 - Al Qaeda made a statement regarding the the legality of the operations and about the hijackers.^[68]

• September 2002 - Al Jazeera aired excerpts from a videotape in which a voice said to be bin Laden's is heard naming the leaders of the 19 9/11 hijackers.

• October 6, 2002 - Al Jazeera broadcasts audiotape message from Osama bin Laden.

Message to the US people. Greetings to those who follow the just path. I advise you in all sincerity and call upon you to follow Islam which stands up for justice and opposes injustice and crime. I also call upon you to seize the messages of the conquests of New York and Washington, which was the response to a part of your past crimes. However, the criminal gang in the White House, those agents of the Jews, are preparing to attack the Muslim world and carve it up, without you dissuading them, meaning that you have not learnt anything. I tell you, as God is my witness, that if America does not cease or reduce the scope of this tension, we will respond in kind, God willing. The youth of Islam are preparing something to strike fear in your hearts and will target the vital sectors of your economy until you renounce your injustice and hostility. We pray for God to help you in this.^[69]

• October 8, 2002 - Al Jazeera broadcasts audiotape message from Ayman al-Zawahiri.

• November 2002 - Bin Laden's "Letter to America".^[70]

October 2004

October 30, 2004 - Bin Laden unequivocally admitted that he and al Qaeda had planned and directed the September 11 attacks. He stated, "I shall talk to you about the story behind those events (the September 11 attacks) and shall tell you truthfully about the moments in which the decision was taken ...." He confirmed his direction of the details of operational planning, stating, "for the record, we had agreed with the Commander-General Muhammad Atta ... that all operations should be carried out within twenty minutes, before Bush and his administration notice."

The entire video was 18 minutes long, with Bin Laden appearing for 14 minutes. Al Jazeera edited it down to a five-minute version, which is what they aired.

• Full Transcript - (in English) from Al Jazeera
• Video - (in Arabic) Broadcast On Al-Jazeera On October 29, 2004

2006

• May 23, 2006 - Osama bin Laden said "I was responsible for entrusting the 19 brothers - Allah have mercy upon them - with those raids ...." Bin Laden added, "the participants in September 11th were two groups: pilots and support teams for each pilot in order to control the aircraft."

2007

• September 2007 - New Osama bin Laden video released [1]

Bin Laden's whereabouts?

It was confirmed that Bin Laden was at Tora Bora, a cave complex south of Jalalabad, in Afghanistan in December 2001.^[71] In 2002, Bin Laden was suspected to be in the border region of Afghanistan and Pakistan, perhaps in and around the Afghan province of Paktia or the Pakistani tribal area of Waziristan.^[71] In September 2002, U.S. intelligence agencies intercepted satellite phone communications between Mullah Omar and a senior aide, which also included some words from Osama bin Laden.^[71] In December 2004, bin Laden was thought to be in Pakistan.^[72] As of 2006, Bin Laden is thought to still be in Pakistan.^[73]

Osama bin Laden's fortune

See also: Al Qaeda financing

Osama bin Laden's fortune has been said to be $250 million-$300 million, inherited from his father who owned a major construction company in Saudi Arabia.^[74][75] While Bin Laden is not poor, this figure is likely by far over-estimating his wealth. From 1970 to 1994, bin Laden received $1 million a year, but was cut off in 1994 after a Saudi crackdown and his citizenship revoked.Information about Bin Laden finances came from visits to Saudi Arabia by the NSC in 1999 and 2000 after the East Africa embassy bombings. U.S. officials met with the Saudis on the issue of terrorist financing, and they interviewed members of Bin Laden's family in the United States.^[76] Though, Bin Laden's sister-in-law, Carmen, thinks he may still be getting some support from the family.^[77]

Bin Laden may have owned some businesses (possibly 35 companies) while he was in Sudan, from 1992 to 1996. His investments may have been to gain influence with the Sudan government, rather than as a revenue source for Al Qaeda. When he was forced to leave Sudan in 1996, the Sudanese government "apparently expropriated his assets and seized his accounts." When he left Sudan, Bin Laden also reportedly lost $150 million or more in investments.^[54] Bin Laden had invested money to build a road in the Sudan, expecting the government to pay him, but Bin Laden only received $10 or 20 million.^[78] When he left Sudan, Bin Laden had little money and it took months for him to get back on his feet when he arrived in Afghanistan in 1996. From that point on, Bin Laden turned to fundraising to support Al Qaeda.^[79]

The CIA supported Osama during the Afghan war?

Main article: Osama bin Laden and the CIA

Fact

This claim by Labeviere is far fetched, but, there also is confusion regarding whether or not the CIA financed and aided bin Laden during the 1980s in Afghanistan, in resisting the Soviets. It was suggested in a 1998 article in Jane's Intelligence Review,^[80] that the CIA provided funding to bin Laden during the Afghan war. Peter Bergen says this is a "fundamental misunderstanding of the Agency's operations in Afghanistan."^[81] Ayman al Zawahiri also rejects claims that Bin Laden and the Arab mujahideen were supported financially or trained by the CIA in his December 2001 book, Knights Under the Prophet's Banner.

In Holy War, Inc., Peter Bergen explains that:^[82]

1. In the 1980s, with the situation in Lebanon, Bin Laden already had anti-American sentiments.
2. Bin Laden had plenty of funds, through his family's businesses, that he had little need for funds from the CIA for building camps in Khost and other of his efforts.

Excerpt from Steve Coll's book, The Bin Ladens:

In a December 1993 interview, Robert Fisk asked about American support for mujahadeen operations in Afghanistan. Bin Laden replied, "Personally neither I nor my brothers saw evidence of American help."^[83]

Osama's response to the question, in an interview with Al Jazeera:

Links with Saddam Hussein?

Fact

In the run-up to the Iraq War, suggestions that Saddam Hussein was somehow linked with Bin Laden and Al Qaeda abounded. Laurie Mylroie was among those that suggested this, in her book Study of Revenge: Saddam Hussein's Unfinished War Against America, published in 2000 by the American Enterprise Institute (AEI). In the book, she argued that Iraq likely sponsored the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, as well as makes suggestions that the 1998 African Embassy bombings were a joint operation between Bin Laden and Saddam Hussein. Mylroie suggests that Ramzi Yousef, who was behind the 1993 attack, was an Iraqi intelligence agent.^[84] The claims are emphatically denied by Peter Bergen, who describes Mylroie, "She is, in short, a crackpot".^[85] And no evidence has turned up that links Saddam in any way to the 9/11 attacks. Each year, the State Department's counterterrorism office issues a survey of global terrorism. The 2000 report stated "[Iraq] has not attempted an anti-western attack since its failed attempt to assassinate former President Bush in 1993 in Kuwait."

FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitive list

Fact

In order to be listed on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitive list, the suspect must have been indicted for the crime. To indict Bin Laden formally for the 9/11 attacks would require presenting evidence in a court of law; such evidence linking Bin Laden to 9/11 would include intelligence sources, and Al-Qaeda detainees. Making such sources (and methods) publicly known, perhaps isn't advised. In the Zacarias Moussaoui case, a big deal was made over access to detainee witnesses and about handling evidence from other intelligence sources.

In all, the 9/11 attacks were viewed as an "act of war", and the U.S. government is responding accordingly. During the Clinton administration, terrorism was handled more as a matter of law enforcement. This change in how terrorism is handled may be yet another reason why the U.S. government has not bothered to formally indict Bin Laden for the 9/11 attacks.

Regarding this matter, FBI officials told the Washington Post:

"There's no mystery here," said FBI spokesman Rex Tomb. "They could add 9/11 on there, but they have not because they don't need to at this point. . . . There is a logic to it." [2]

The FBI also maintains a list of "Most Wanted Terrorists". This list is accompanied by a note:

The alleged terrorists on this list have been indicted by sitting Federal Grand Juries in various jurisdictions in the United States for the crimes reflected on their wanted posters. Evidence was gathered and presented to the Grand Juries, which led to their being charged. The indictments currently listed on the posters allow them to be arrested and brought to justice. Future indictments may be handed down as various investigations proceed in connection to other terrorist incidents, for example, the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. [3]

A document released by the U.K. government, Responsibility for the terrorist atrocities in the United States, 11 September 2001 presents facts that link Osama Bin Laden and Al Qaeda to the 9/11 attacks.

The U.K. document further notes:

This document does not purport to provide a prosecutable case against Usama Bin Laden in a court of law. Intelligence often cannot be used evidentially, due both to the strict rules of admissibility and to the need to protect the safety of sources. But on the basis of all the information available HMG is confident of its conclusions as expressed in this document.

Options for prosecuting Bin Laden

Indicting Bin Laden and prosecuting him for his role in the 9/11 attacks, through the usual criminal justice process in the U.S. is not the only and possibly not the best option.

The terrorist crimes of September 11 violate a host of U.S. criminal laws, including laws that criminalize acts of international terrorism (specifically when such acts include homicide); destruction of aircraft, incapacitating any individual on an aircraft, performing an act of violence against any individual on an aircraft, or conspiring to do so; and forgery of passports or other immigration documents. The terrorist crimes also probably constitute crimes against humanity, namely, multiple acts committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack knowingly directed against any civilian population in furtherance of a state or organizational policy. The latter would be a novel charge to prosecute in a U.S. federal court, as it derives from customary international law and is not codified as such in the U.S. federal criminal code. But as a matter of international law, the attacks of September 11 could be characterized as crimes against humanity and could be charged against the perpetrators, if not in U.S. federal court then in a foreign jurisdiction or international tribunal that exercises personal jurisdiction over one or more suspects or recognizes such crimes as crimes of universal jurisdiction.^[86]

Foreign courts

Prosecution in foreign national courts may prove to be the more likely alternative to U.S. prosecution in a number of cases. British prosecution of the Lockerbie (Pan Am 103) defendants (albeit in a special courtroom established in The Netherlands and adjudicated under Scottish law by Scottish judges) proved in the long run to be a much more attractive option than U.S. prosecution for that particular terrorist crime. Foreign prosecutions may also have important political advantages. In terms of constructing a robust international legal architecture for dealing with terrorism, the optics and the practical consequences of having prosecutions in both U.S. and foreign courts is significant. This may prove crucial to the long-term campaign, and American victims should take comfort from a scenario in which the United States does not have to go it alone; rather a variety of countries, through rigorous prosecutions, would treat the September 11 attacks and their fallout as attacks against all civilized nations. Foreign trials may also prove essential in dealing with persons in the al Qaeda network who cannot be prosecuted for U.S. crimes but are still important parts of the overall terrorist threat to us.

Terrorist suspects may be investigated and prosecuted in one or more foreign courts regardless of U.S. interests or desires, and this is already happening. A foreign government may refuse a U.S. extradition request, for example. This could well be the case if the United States declines to waive the death penalty with respect to a terrorist suspect held in an anti-death penalty jurisdiction. Also, foreign officials may consider it their own responsibility to bring to justice individuals who engaged within their jurisdiction in the planning or commission of terrorist attacks either on their own soil or elsewhere. And the United States may find it preferable for certain low- or mid-level terrorist suspects to be prosecuted before foreign courts, particularly in highly developed jurisdictions where we have confidence in the judicial system.

Spain

In 2003, Investigative magistrate Baltasar Garzon of Spain issued an indictment against Osama bin Laden for his involvement in the 9/11 attacks. Along with bin Laden, Ramzi Binalshibh and others affiliated with Al Qaeda were also indicted.^[87] The indictment included evidence that Spain was used as a staging ground for the attacks.^[88] Spain does not allow trials for suspects in absentia.^[88]

References