|
Born in Saudi Arabia in 1957, Osama was the
17th of 52 children. He lost his father, a construction magnate
at age 10 in a helicopter accident. His father reportedly
had four wives.
He inherited a share of his family upon his
father's death and was married for the first time at age 17
to a cousin. Educated at the King Abdul Aziz University in
Jeddah, he met Abdullah Azzam, a Palestinian who played a
large role in the resurgence of Islamic religiosity, at the
University. He was one of Osama's teachers. Osama also joined
the Muslim Brotherhood while he was in University.
In 1979, at age 22, Osama joined the Afghan
resistence fighters, also known as the mujahideen, to fight
Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. He used his wealth to finance
this battle against Soviet incursion.
Osama first built a guesthouse in Peshawar for
the Arab Mujahideen fighters, also known in some quarters
as Arab Afghans, but their numbers grew. He eventually built
camps for these fighters inside Afghanistan. These accommodations
that he built were given the name al-Qaeda which in Arabic
means "the base'.
Osama bin Laden the military commander was reportedly
respected by his followers for his organizational skills,
courage and ability to survive.
The Afghan war against the Soviet army was backed
by the American government, to the tune of some US$3 billion.
It also had the blessings of the Saudi Arabian and Pakistani
governments.
Towards the end of the war, Osama became more
radical as was disillusioned by what he saw as the lack of
recognition for his effort and achievements.
He went back to the family construction business
and raised funds for veterans of the Afghan war.
In 1990, the Saudi government allowed 500,000
US troops to be stationed in Saudi Arabia following the Iraqi
invasion of Kuwait. Osama was outraged by US presence in Saudi
Arabia, especially after his offer to provide a mujahideen
army to defend Kuwait was turned down. In his eyes this was
a betrayal of epic proportions.
Osama soon became an opponent of the Saudi regime
and directed his efforts against the US and its allies in
the Middle East.
A year later, he was expelled from Saudi Arabia
for his anti-government activities. He sought refuge in Sudan
where he spent the next five years funding various infrastructure
projects for the Islamist government of Khartoum.
When the Saudi Government's offer for a reconciliation
was turned down, Osama's citizenship was finally stripped
and his bank accounts frozen. His family also reportedly disowned
him.
Meanwhile the Sudanese Government was under
pressure by the US to expel Osama, who eventually returned
to Afghanistan. He allegedly grew more radical and messianic
with the increasing pressure upon him.
In February of 1993, a bomb at the World Trade
Centre killed six and wounded hundreds others. The six who
were convicted for the bombing were suspected to have links
with Osama.
In October that same year, 18 US servicemen
who were part of the humanitarian mission to Somalia were
killed in an ambush. Osama claimed that some of the Arab Afghans
were involved in the killing. He taunted the US by calling
them paper tigers as they withdrew from Somalia soon after
the soldiers' deaths.
In 1996, the Sudanese government which was under
constant pressure from the US expelled Osama from the country,
who moved to Afghanistan with his 10 children and three wives.
He declares a jihad or holy way against US forces.
Osama was indicted on charges of training the
people involved in the 1993 attack in Somalia.
In 1998, Osama issues a famous fatwa (religious
ruling) for all Muslims to kill Americans.
In early August that same year, two truck bombs
explode outside the US embassies in Nairobi, Kenya and Tanzania,
claiming some 224 lives.
In November, Osama was indicted on charges of
masterminding the August attacks.
Meanwhile these allegations, whether founded
or otherwise was giving Osama stature a tremendous boost,
prompting analysts to caution against giving him credit for
such atrocities without adequate proof.
In 2000, an Algerian national pleaded guilty
to a failed plot to bomb Los Angeles International Airport
during the millennium celebrations. He also claimed that he
had been trained in urban warfare and explosives at an Afghanistan
camp run by Osama.
In February 2001, Osama appeared in public for
his son's wedding in Kandahar.
Following the September 11 attacks, Osama was
named prime suspect by the US government.
In March 2002, unconfirmed reports placed Osama
in eastern Afghanistan directing troops.
To date, Osama remains illusive, with no clear
proof whether or not he is still indeed the man behind the
as alQaeda.
|
