By Dr. K. Sohail

Osama Bin Laden is emerging as the mythological figure of the twenty- first century. Since the bombing of the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre in New York and the Pentagon in Washington on September 11th, 2001, Osama Bin Laden has become a household name all over the world. Almost immediately, his picture appeared on the front pages of national newspapers as the American Government’s most wanted man -- Dead or Alive. There is a reward of twenty-five million dollars on his head because the American Government is holding him, and his organization al Qaeda, responsible for the terrorist attacks. America asked the Afghani Taliban Government to hand him over for trial. President George Bush stated in his speech on September 20, 2001, “Americans are asking who attacked our country. The evidence we have gathered all points to a collection of loosely affiliated terrorist organizations known as al Qaeda…This group and its leader … a person named Osama bin Ladin…are linked to many other organizations in different countries, including the Egyptian Islamic Jihad and the Islamic movement of Ujbekistan. There are thousands of these terrorists in more than 60 countries…And tonight, the United States of America makes the following demands on the Taliban…Deliver to United States authorities all the leaders of al Qaeda who hide in your land…The Taliban must act, and act immediately. They will hand over the terrorists, or they will share in their fate”. (Ref 1). In spite of the President’s declaration of war, Taliban representatives repeatedly asked for convincing proof of the association between the American tragedy and Osama Bin Laden. Taliban insisted that if the tragedy took place in New York but the hijackers were from Saudi Arabia, how was the Afghani Government responsible for the attack?

When the American Government failed to convince the Taliban Government in Afghanistan to hand over Osama bin Laden, the Americans widened their accusations to the past terrorist attacks of al Qaeda. They have believed over the years that Osama Bin Laden has been masterminding all terrorist attacks across the world against American Embassies and American diplomats. President Bush in his speech stated, “ They [the members of al Qaeda] are the same murderers indicted for bombing American embassies in Tanzania and Kenya, and responsible for bombing the USS Cole.” (Ref 1). Osama Bin Laden has been on the FBI Wanted List for a number of years. In spite of the unusually large reward offered, American Intelligence agencies have not been able to find this very dangerous man.
The FBI, in its campaign against the Most Wanted Fugitive, has stated
“Osama bin Laden is wanted in connection with the August 7, 1998 bombings of the United States Embassies in Dar es Salam, Tanzania and Nairobi, Kenya. These attacks killed over 200 people. Considered armed and extremely dangerous.
Reward
 The United States Government is offering a reward of up to $5 million for information leading directly to the apprehension or conviction of Osama bin Laden.”
(Ref 2)

 When we review Osama bin Laden’s relationship with America we discover to our amazement that he was hired by the American Government and trained by the CIA and the experts of guerilla warfare arranged by America in the 1980s to fight the Holy War against Communism. That was the time when Christians and Muslims were fighting together against the atheists, the non-believing Communists. But after the war with Russia, there was a fall-out and friends became enemies because their friendship was based on common animosity with Russia rather than any shared values. Osama Bin Laden was disappointed that Americans did not fulfill the promises of building the Afghani nation -- no doubt a serious diplomatic mistake, as it will take many times the millions that should have been spent on infrastructure, to fight the current “war” in Afghanistan.

After Laden’s disillusionment with the West and with the Royal Family of Saudi Arabia, who invited American troops onto the sacred soil of the Islamic Holy Land, he formed his own organization, al Qaeda. He declared a Holy War against Jews and Christians in general and America in particular and transformed himself into a Holy Warrior in the eyes of many Muslims. . Over the years, he has successfully in recruited and psychologically conditioned thousands of men who are willing to sacrifice their lives for him.

After Laden declared jihad, the Holy War against America, there have been a number of serious attempts to assassinate him but the American Government has not been successful, in spite of their most sophisticated intelligence agencies. Former President Bill Clinton had declared Laden “ America’s Public Enemy Number One” (Ref 3) giving him political and public stature that he had not enjoyed before. Some politicians believe that Laden benefits from the rising anger in the Muslim World against America. Hamid Mir, a Pakistani journalist stated, “ In many Islamic countries, Osama is a hero by default…he is the main beneficiary of the growing hatred in the Islamic World against America.” (Ref 4)

It is ironic that America has been trying to bomb the camps they had established and kill the groups they had created. They have been trying to destroy the trees they had planted in the 1980s, not knowing they would produce such bitter fruits. Robert Fisk, a journalist with “The Nation” wrote in 1998, “Some of his [Osama bin Laden’s] current Afghan fellow fighters had been trained earlier by the CIA in the very camps that were the target of recent US missiles…but whereas they had been called camps for “ freedom fighters” when US agents set them up in the early eighties, now they had become camps for “terrorists”. (Ref 3)
When we study Laden’s leadership in the Muslim World and his struggles with the Western World, it becomes clear that Osama bin Laden is dedicated to his cause and committed to his fatal mission. He has a dream and his dream has many parts. He would like:

… to topple the governments of Royal Families in the Middle East. He believes that on one hand, they do not represent Islam and on the other hand, they have become puppets in the hands of the Western World.

… the Western World to stop interfering with the domestic affairs of the Muslim World.

… Americans to take their soldiers back from Saudi Arabia, the land of Holy Places

… the Western World to lift sanctions on Iraq which have killed thousands of innocent children, women and men because of lack of food, clothes, shelter and medicines.

… Palestine to be a strong and free state, independent of Western influences.

…all Muslim nations to be united under one flag. He wants to erase all borders between Muslim countries. He wants all Muslims to be part of one umma, one nation, one country, one state. He believes it can happen only through an armed struggle, a jihad, a Holy War.

To make his dream come true, Osama bin Laden has been working hard and relentlessly for the last two decades. When we try to understand the dynamics
of Laden’s dream, we realize that a number of factors and circumstances have played a significant role in the evolution of his dream.
 Laden inherited the vision of a strong Muslim Nation from his father, the late Mohammed bin Laden, who wanted to liberate Jerusalem, the land of Holy Places,             from the influence of the Jews. “Osama’s father owned a construction company that took part in the renovation of Medina and Al-Aqsa mosques. He wanted to liberate Al-Aqsa from Jewish control.” (Ref 4) Osama stated in his interview, “ My father decided to produce many sons, as many as he could and to convert them into mujaheds [holy warriors].” (Ref 4) Osama’s father had many wives and 52 children. Osama has been walking in the footsteps of his father not only by preparing himself for a Holy War but also by having sixteen children and bringing them up as dedicated Muslims and Holy Warriors. He stated in his interview, “I have sixteen children. All of my sons are ready to sacrifice their lives in the name of Allah Almighty.” (Ref 4)

When Osama bin Laden was a teenager he spent many hours with religious scholars in Saudi Arabia and had passionate discussions about Islamic faith, traditions and the concept of an ideal Islamic state. He became aware that Islamic states down through the centuries have been taken over by Royal Families and dictators, and their governments have not been faithful to their cultural and religious heritage. They have been corrupted by the wealth, greed and Western secular influences.
After finishing his studies in Riyadh, he decided to join the Holy War against Communist Russia and fight for the cause of Islam. That was the time when he travelled to Pakistan and Afghanistan in 1979 and met Afghani leaders to organize a strong army to fight the atheistic Communist regime. In the 1980s America supported Osama bin Laden and provided him with most modern guerilla war experts to train his army. Osama bin Laden recruited thousands of Muslim soldiers, Mujahedeens, from nearly sixty Muslim countries and established their camps in different parts of Afghanistan. America had promised Laden that when he won the Holy War against Communism, they would help him to build a strong and independent Muslim Nation and provide it with all the necessary technical and financial support to build schools, roads and hospitals so that the poor and desperate Muslims in Afghanistan and other parts of the Muslim World could prosper.

After the Communists were defeated and the Russian troops went back home, America did not fulfill her promises. Laden was utterly disappointed in America. He felt cheated, manipulated, exploited and abused by American Government, after “he” had won the war against Russia.

Laden then focused on Saudi Arabia. He was critical of the Royal Family who he considered an oppressive regime. He believed the Saudi Government had harassed and hurt many Muslim scholars.  “The regime” he stated, “has strived to keep these scholars in the shadows and then removed them, one way or another, from being effective elements in the lives of the people in the community.” (Ref 5) He was also critical of the Saudi Government as it was heavily influenced by the Western governments. “The external policy of the Saud regime towards Islamic issues is a policy which is tied to the British outlook from the establishment of Saudi Arabia until 1364 ah (1945 A.D.), when it became attached to the American outlook after America gained prominence as a major power in the world after the Second World War.” (Ref 5)  Laden wanted Saudi Arabia to be ruled according to the Islamic Laws and traditions. When the Saudi Government felt threatened by his activities, he was put under house arrest.

Laden finally escaped and went to the Sudan to build a seven-hundred-mile highway. He brought equipment and soldiers from Afghanistan to construct the highway. He gradually became a local hero, as the Sudanese saw in him a Savior who wanted to build a strong Muslim nation. When asked by Robert Fisk, a journalist from the Independent [newspaper] why he was building a highway for the Sudanese, he replied,  “They like this work and so do I. This is a great plan which we are achieving for the people here, it helps the Muslims and improves their lives.” (Ref 6) In the Sudan, Osama bin Laden created the reputation of a reformer and a nation builder, that continues to grow.

Laden’s criticism of the Saudi Government escalated. He did not want the Saudi Government to be dependent on America. The American and Saudi governments turned against him. Saudi Arabia cancelled his citizenship and threatened to freeze his assets that were worth millions of dollars.
Osama bin Laden’s breaking point came after the Gulf War when he became extremely angry with America heading the attack on Iraq and with Saudi Arabia’s invitation to American troops to enter their Holy land.

Osama bin Laden’s anger became generalized to the entire Western World when he saw thousands of innocent children, women and men dying because of the sanctions against Iraq. He was also furious at Palestinians suffering without an independent state to live peacefully and respectfully. He saw millions of Palestinian refugees throughout the world who could not return to their motherland. He expressed his anger in one of his interviews, “Americans want to implement the UN resolutions against Iraq, Libya and Iran but not against Israel because America is Islam’s enemy”…( Ref 4)  “When Iraq attacked Kuwait, my government [Saudi] asked for my help but I left my country because I was not ready to fight against Iraq with the help of the Americans who ditched us in Afghanistan”. (Ref 4)

Finally Osama bin Laden lost his patience and organized his group al Qaeda and in August 1996 declared a Holy War against the Western World in general and America in particular. In his March 1997 interview with Peter Arnett of CNN, he said,“ We declared jihad against the US government, because the US 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 Israeli occupation of the Prophet’s Night Travel Land (Palestine). And we believe the US is directly responsible for those who were killed in Palestine, Lebanon and Iraq.” (Ref 6)

When Laden moved back to Afghanistan, the Taliban came into power. They wanted to put the philosophy of Mujahedeen, supported and trained by America and Pakistan, into practice. Osama bin Laden also had an opportunity to make Afghanistan the first country to adopt his concept of a true Islamic Government based on many centuries of teachings.

It is ironic that Laden’s dream of an Islamic State was not a modern, liberal, secular and pluralistic State, it was rather a dream of an oppressive, controlling theocratic State. Within a few years Laden’s dream turned into the nation’s nightmare. Millions of Afghanis began fleeing the country and ended up in refugee camps in the neighboring countries. Mulla Omar, the Afghani leader, a close associate of Laden, became so unpopular that only three countries chose to have diplomatic ties with Afghanistan. Laden was introduced by the Saudi and American governments to the rest of the world as a terrorist who was leading the al Qaeda terrorist organization. The oppressive practices in Afghanistan caused President Bush to state that he wanted to liberate the Afghani people from the Taliban and Islam from al Qaeda. His September 20, 2001 speech made that clear. “In Afghanistan, we see al Qaeda’s vision of the world…Afghanistan’s people have been brutalized…many are starving and many have fled. Women are not allowed to attend school. You can be jailed for owning a television. Religion can be practiced only as their leaders dictate. A man can be jailed in Afghanistan if his beard is not long enough…The terrorists are traitors to their own faith, trying, in effect, to hijack Islam itself.” (Ref 1)

It is also interesting to note that the same America who is criticizing the Taliban Government has been benefiting from the multi-million, even multi-billion heroin market of Afghanistan. Indian writer Arundhati Roy highlighted that phenomenon in her letter to The Guardian: “Within two years of the CIA’s arrival, the Pakistan-Afghanistan borderland had become the biggest producer of heroin in the world, and the single biggest source of heroin on American streets. The annual profits, said to be between $100bn and $200bn, were ploughed back into training and arming militants…Before the CIA arrived, there was a small rural market for opium in Pakistan. Between 1979 and 1985, the number of heroin addicts grew from zero to one-and-a-half million.” (Ref 10) Those numbers have increased in the last decade.

When we review Osama bin Laden’s philosophy and lifestyle, it appears that he has a personality like an iceberg, a personality that conceals more than it reveals. We see only the tip; the rest is hidden under water. It is not surprising, keeping his personality in mind, that he chose the career of leader of one of the most powerful guerilla warrior organizations. He is aware that in guerilla warfare most of the action is in the form of ambushes, performed in the darkness of the night, thus enhancing the mystery he has become throughout the world.

Today, Osama bin Laden has become a mythological character. It is difficult to differentiate fact from fiction, fantasy from reality. It is hard to know the strength of his following. He seems to be a self-appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Muslim World who has declared jihad, a Holy War against the Western World and America in particular.   “ If liberating my land is called terrorism, this is a great honour for me.”(Ref 3) When we study Osama bin Laden’s life story, we are amazed to find that in the last two decades he has challenged three great powers of the world: the Soviet Union, the Saudi Royal Family and now the American Empire. With each confrontation, he became stronger, braver and apparently fearless. He has reached a stage in life where he is not afraid of death. He gives part of the credit to his deep faith. His religious beliefs give him peace and tranquility. He shares his profound experience in these words: “ No, I was never afraid of death. As Muslims, we believe that when we die, we go to heaven. Before a battle, God sends us sequina, tranquility. Once I was only 30 meters from the Russians and they were trying to capture me. I was under bombardment but I was so peaceful in my heart that I fell asleep.” (Ref 7).

When we focus on the highlights of Laden’s life, it becomes clear that the turning point came when he abandoned the luxurious lifestyle of Saudi Arabia and joined the Holy War against Russia. That profound experience transformed his life and his philosophy. He stated in his interview with Robert Fisk, “ What I lived in two years there, I could not have lived in a hundred years elsewhere.” (Ref 3)

When people see Laden’s picture on television screen, they see a kind, reserved, serene and tranquil face. Many believe he looks more like a Holy Man than a terrorist. Laden has charm and charisma. Thousands of young men from all over the Muslim world are dying to see him, to touch him, to kiss his hand and give their lives for his cause. He has many characteristics of a Cultish Personality.

People with Cultish Personalities are not only charismatic; they also lead non-traditional lives because of their unconventional philosophies and belief systems. They continually challenge taboos and confront traditions, which causes them to run afoul of legal, religious and social institutions. They are generally creative and many of their activities are seen as unethical, abnormal and even criminal. Because of their charm and charisma they develop a following. It is not difficult for them to attract very dedicated disciples who are willing to make enormous sacrifices for their leader. Over time, the following grows. Unfortunately when the guru is penalized and persecuted, the followers also suffer.

The twentieth century has produced a number of such Cultish Personalities all over the world. The first one that comes to my mind is Gregory Rasputin, the mad monk of Siberia. In the early part of the twentieth century, Rasputin became a mythological figure in Russian politics. He had a number of characteristics that made him extra-ordinary. He was loved and hated by millions of Russians. He started his career as a religious minister in Siberia but gradually he became famous throughout the country because of his hypnotic and healing powers. When Tsar Nicholas and Tsaritsa Alexandra realized that their son suffered from Hemophilia and could not be cured by doctors, one of the maids suggested to the Tsaritsa that she should consult Rasputin. When Rasputin was summoned, the young prince was so sick that the doctors were worried he would die of the continuous bleeding. Rasputin asked all the physicians present to leave and spent half an hour with the child on his own. When the Tsar and Tsarita came into the room, they were amazed to see their son smiling and playing. The Tsarita was so impressed by the healing miracle that she became Rasputin’s disciple. Although Tsar was suspicious of Rasputin’s intentions, the Tsarita continued to invite him to the palace.
 Over the years, Rasputin became a major political influence in the Tsar’s family and political life. Rasputin himself led a very dissolute life; he slept with married and single women indiscriminately, drank excessively and at times got violent and abusive. This behaviour made him many enemies who attempted to kill him by various means; ultimately he was poisoned, shot and drowned in a dramatic finale. Historians hold Rasputin partly responsible for the downfall of the Tsar. It has been said that if there had been no Rasputin, there would have been no Lenin.

In the second half of the twentieth century there were a number of men in America who became famous and notorious because of their Cultish Personalities. One of them was David Koresh. He was a follower of a Bulgarian-born immigrant to America, Victor Houtoff, who started his Branch Davidian sect as an offshoot of the mainstream Seventh Day Adventists in 1929. David Koresh took over the cult in 1986.

 “He introduced ideas of polygamy, group upbringing of commune children, violent resistance to outside authorities and, most significantly, the idea that he was the bearer of the final message of God and the key to the Seventh Seal of the Book of Revelation by which the faithful would be marked and saved from doom” (Ref 9).
 Koresh got into legal trouble because his disciples began collecting arms in their commune. When they refused to surrender to the police, the cult compound was attacked by the FBI and all but two members perished in the ensuing fire of April 19th, 1993.

One other Cultish Personality who became well-known in North America was Guru Rajneesh, who was originally a professor of philosophy in India. Because of his intelligence and mesmerizing personality, he attracted a number of disciples. With his preachings of meditation and free sex, he attracted as members of his ashram thousands of Westerners who were exploring alternate lifestyles. But his philosophy and teachings were criticized by local people, to the point that he had to leave India.

Michael Jordan in his book CULTS wrote, “ He had managed to attract considerable antagonism on the sub-continent for his hostility and derogation of others, including Gandhi and Mother Teresa of Calcutta. His self-styles title of Bhagwan [which means God and also Master of Vagina] and his overseeing of naked, sexually-charged romps on the seashore brought more local disfavor.” (Ref 9)

Rajneesh was forced to relocate to the United States where he established his own commune. For a while he was so successful that he had accumulated, among other trappings of wealth, a fleet of 99 Rolls Royces. However, he got into legal difficulties with the local community and was asked to leave America. Unfortunately, his motherland refused to take him so for a few years he wandered around the world until his death in 1990, “ allegedly as a result of either poisoning or from full-blown AIDS.” (Ref 9) In the years since his death, millions of people have visited his Ashram in India. Interestingly the leader of the movement is a Canadian by the name of Swami Mike, son of a British Columbia judge. According to one report, the average revenue generated in that Ashram in Poona, India, is nearly 50 million dollars a year.

Like many other Cultish Personalities Osama Bin Laden has also been successful in creating a myth, a myth in which it is very difficult to differentiate between fact and fiction, fantasy and reality.

Is he a terrorist?
Is he a freedom fighter?
Is he a Holy Warrior?

The more we investigate his life story, the more we come to the realization that perceptions are as important as realities. In his own eyes he is a freedom fighter, in the eyes of many Americans a terrorist, and in the eyes of many Muslims a Holy warrior.

When we read the speeches of Osama bin Laden and George Bush, we are struck by a number of similarities. Each believes he is fighting for justice and peace. Each believes the other is a terrorist. Each believes he is on the right path. Each believes that the other is doing injustice to the cause and message of Islam. Both men are willing to wage war and kill innocent people, believing God is on their side.

Osama Bin Laden will remain a myth until he is captured alive and tried in some International Court. Some believe that if that happens, many political, military and terrorist realities might surface which most of the world may not be ready to accept. As long he is in hiding or finally found dead, the myth will continue. Some already consider him an institution and a legacy and feel that he has forced the American Government, the biggest Superpower since the fall of the USSR, to take the problems of the Muslim world seriously and address some of the unresolved issues between the Muslim and the Non-Muslim worlds and the conflicts between the Western and the Eastern Worlds.

Many believe that Osama bin Laden’s main contribution to world politics is that he has forced politicians, intellectuals and the common people to put pressure on the government of the United States to review their foreign policy. His message has already found some echoes inside and outside America. Many enlightened American intellectuals and progressive politicians and writers from all over the world have asked the American Government and people to do some soul-searching and consider why there has been escalating anger and resentment in the Muslim World against America. Arthur Kent, a Canadian journalist, in his article “Season of Change” wrote, “Shocked out of its sense of splendid isolation, America wants revenge. But is anyone thinking of how to win the battle for global hearts and minds?” He also highlighted a poster held by Pakistani protesters asking the question, “Americans Think! Why you are hated all over the world?” (Ref 8).

American intellectual Noam Chomsky answered the question by stating that the reason for such hatred is that the United States “is the prime backer of the corrupt and brutal Saudi regime and others like it in the region”. Even an enlightened United States Congressman, Ron Paul, made a strong case for restraint and reflection in the House of Representatives on September 25th, 2001, in his speech, “America Needs A Non-interventionist Foreign Policy”.

When Osama bin Laden was asked by a journalist if he had any message for the American President, he said he only had a message for American mothers. He stated, “ To these mothers I say if they are concerned for their sons, then let them object to the American Government’s policy and to the American president. Do not let themselves be cheated by his standing before the bodies of the killed soldiers describing the freedom fighters in Saudi Arabia as terrorists. It is he who is a terrorist, who pushed their sons into this for the sake of the Israeli interest. We believe that the American army in Saudi Arabia came to separate between the Muslims and the people for not ruling in accordance with Allah’s wish. They came to be in support of the Israeli forces in occupied Palestine, the land of the “ Israa” of our Prophet (PBUH). (Ref 6)

Osama bin Laden strongly believes that if the underlying unresolved problems between Muslim and Non-Muslim worlds are not solved, then there will be violent confrontations and Holy Wars in the future.
 
“ If you kill one Osama today, there will be a hundred Osamas tomorrow”
        Osama bin Laden
 
     REFERENCES
1. Bush, George. Address to a Joint Session of Congress and the American People,
Washington D.C., September 20, 2001.
2. FBI, U.S. Department of State, Washington D.C. June 1999.
3. Fisk, Robert. The Nation Newspaper Talks With Osama Bin Laden, [New York]  September 21, 1998.
4.   Mir, Hamid. The Friday Times [Pakistan] Sep 21-27, 2001.
5.   “Mujahid Usamah Bin Laden Talks Exclusively to Nida ul Islam about The New
      Powder Keg in the Middle East”, Nida-ul-Islam, [Sydney], October-November, 1996.
6. Arnett, Peter. CNN Article Interview with Osama Bin Laden, Afghanistan, [N.p.]
March, 1997.
7.   Fisk, Robert. “The Holy Warrior: Interview with Osama Bin Laden” The Independent
      [U.K], Dec 6, 1996.
8.   Kent, Arthur. “Season of Change”, Macleans Weekly Magazine, [Toronto] October 1,
      2001.
9.   Jordan, Michael.  CULTS,  Britain, 1996.
10. Roy, Arundhati.  “The Algebra of Infinite Justice”, The Guardian, [London]
      September 29, 2001.

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