Osama Bin Laden Influence

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On September 11, 2001 an unforgettable tragedy struck the United States that will forever be remembered in the minds of American citizens and within the confines of United States history. The terror stuck the heart of New York City when two planes crashed into the World Trade Center. Total chaos ensued, lives were lost and many were injured as a result. Thousands of lives were lost in a single morning, people scattered for help and to be saved, and many died trying to save them. Ten years later on May 2, 2011 the founder of the militant Islamist organization al-Qaeda and mastermind behind the terrorist attacks, Osama bin Laden was killed. On this momentous day, President Barack Obama uttered the words, “The world is safer, it is a better place …show more content…
As mentioned previously, Bin Laden put in much effort towards religious studies in college and he was also influenced by several other Islamic intellectuals. According to the 9/11 Commission Report, “through writers like Qutb, and the presence of Egyptian Islamist teachers in the educational system, Islamists already had a strong intellectual influence on Bin Laden and his al Qaeda colleagues” (56). Bin Laden’s extensive understanding of the extremist Islamic teachings that had intrigued him in the past served as one of the driving forces of his pursuit of worldwide jihad.
In addition to Bin Laden’s religious intellect, Bin Laden’s growing power within the structure of al Qaeda’s organization led to his newfound sense of self-confidence, superiority and ambition. Although he and his colleague Azzam had disagreements over the mission of al Qaeda, following Azzam’s death Bin Laden assumed full control over the organization and thus controlled the direction of its conquests. Through the death of Azzam, Bin Laden was able to pursue his goal of preparing mujahideen, or “holy warriors” to fight attackers of Islam all over the