An overview of Osama bin Laden’s life

His father had more than fifty children in his lifetime, including Osama bin Laden. As a result, we had almost no relationship with him. He shares with his father just a few times, according to some historians. However, he was able to study in the best colleges and universities in Saudi Arabia because of his economic benefits.

FACTS TO KNOW

Osama bin Laden was obsessed with Islamic culture and the Koran. In his early teens, bin Laden knew every verse of Islam’s holy book.

The Saudi’s life would be marked more by his religious beliefs than his academic interests following his graduation from King Abdul Aziz University. Bin Laden had already been indoctrinated with extreme religious beliefs before he reached majority. For bin Laden, Islamic beliefs were the complete opposite of the Western lifestyle, where liberalism dominated and God was disrespected.

Osama bin Laden and the United States

Osama bin Laden rejected Western culture, especially that belonging to the United States, who he always considered heretics, after creating several Islamist groups. For this reason, bin Laden and his friends had to inform the world about the importance of “Islamic purity” and how the Qur’an is the only and most reliable account of God.

Afghanistan was seized by the Soviet Union in 1979. As a result of this, Osama bin Laden joined his country’s military resistance and was part of the so-called “holy war.” Bin Laden quickly became an accomplished soldier, and with the help of the United States government, he began training Afghans to fight Soviet troops a short time later.

It may sound dystopian, but the American troops deemed the Saudis’ work admirable and impeccable, considering bin Laden’s future with the Americans. Osama bin Laden, however, distrusted the American military and political leaders at that point. Bin Laden founded Al Qaeda as a result of this and the Gulf War.

Everything would change with this plan

As the leader of Al Qaeda, Osama bin Laden was supported by Muslim ex-servicemen. In 1996, bin Laden had already carried out one of his first attacks in Saudi Arabia by exploding several car bombs outside the US embassy. Osama bin Laden’s enmity towards the US government became apparent after this first attack. It was bin Laden who was the number one enemy of the northern country by the end of the nineties.

On September 11, 2001, Al Qaeda attacked the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, marking the culmination of all this terrorist evolution. As a result of these attacks, more than 3,000 people died, changing the course of American history forever.

Following this terrifying scenario, the United States decided that killing Osama bin Laden was an essential mission. Bin Laden was assassinated on May 2, 2011 at his home in Abbottabad, Pakistan, after several years of silent persecution. The story of his assassination plot was documented by director Kathryn Bigelow in Blackest Night (2012).