The making of Osama Bin Laden: Terrors human face

Islamabad, May 2: Osama Bin Laden's death is clouding the world media and the United States of America is on a moral high ground with the death of the al-Qaeda kingpin and claims that "

". Laden can be easily described as the - human face of terror, he orchestrated and masterminded many operations in the name of terror. He was the one who made us believe that no place is safe on earth. The fact remains that no one can forget the man behind it all, the man who shook the world's super power, the USA and brought it down to its knees in the deadly attack on the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon, the two seats of power. The 9/11 attacks can never be pushed from the minds of US citizens or anyone across the world.

Osama Bin Laden's meteoric rise is something out of a fiction novel. With an upbringing in a rich Saudi Arabia household, he was born on Mar 10, 1957 and was one among the 50 children of millionaire businessman Mohamed bin Laden. Later with his marriage to a Syrian woman and subsequent marriages with close to 4 others, he is believed to have fathered more than 23 children. He was also a qualified Civil Engineer.

With his covert operations that encompassed Yemen, Iraq and North Africa, the seeds of terror were initially sown during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, where he raised funds in Pakistan which helped him move to Afghan border and setting up militant training camps. His extremist ideologies also led to his family disowning him and he forgoing his Saudi citizenship.

It was a slow but steady climb for Osama being named the Most Wanted Fugitive by the American Federal Bureau of Investigation. He was instrumental in popularizing extremist jihad. After his ouster from Saudi Arabia, Osama set up base in Khartoum, Sudan. His first suspected attack on US was on Dec 29, 1992, an attack on the Gold Mohur hotel in Yemen where US troops were stationed who were on their way to Sudan. He later claimed responsibility for the attacks. The series of attacks that were organized subsequently reiterated his extreme hate for the US, where he declared in Aug 1996 a "Declaration of War" against the US.

He also had considerable ire towards Muslim countries who were supporting the US in its 'War against terror' including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and other Middle Eastern nations. His other unpopular ideology was of using women and children were also legitimate targets of jihad. The many videos that were recorded and broadcasted by certain news channels also revealed his deep rooted hatred towards Western elements. He was tremendously supported by Taliban who held similar sentiments and united in ideology and execution of anti-jihad elements.

The 9/11 attacks was the one incident that upped the ante that led to US joining forces with other countries in the 'campaign against terror'. The Clinton, Bush and Obama administration relentlessly worked towards capturing the most wanted criminal of the world. But after he evaded repeated attempts by changing his hideouts, success was achieved only on May 2, 2011 when he was killed in a secret military operation.

It can be recalled that Osama Bin Laden was largely responsible in making 'Muslim' a bad word in the minds of the Western average populace who were left smarting after the deadly attacks on innocent people in the US and other countries.

OneIndia News