Twenty-five years after the September 11 terror attacks, the words used by Osama bin Laden to justify violence against the United States remain part of the historical record of an event that transformed the country and the wider world. In the document, titled "Letter to America" and written in 2002, bin Laden goes on a rant about the U.S., blaming the country's intervention in the Middle East, including its decades-long support for Israel, for the bloodshed of Afghans and Palestinians. In the letter, the 9/11 mastermind pinpoints the U.S. for the oppression of the Palestinian people by Israel, writing: "The creation and continuation of Israel is one of the greatest crimes, and you are the leaders of its criminals.
Each and every person whose hands have become polluted in the contribution towards this crime must pay its price, and pay for it heavily." Bin Laden wrote that Palestinians had to be "revenged," the same as the people of Afghanistan, and that this justified the killing of American civilians. "The American people are the ones who pay the taxes which fund the planes that bomb us in Afghanistan, the tanks that strike and destroy our homes in Palestine, the armies which occupy our lands in the Arabian Gulf, and the fleets which ensure the blockade of Iraq," bin Laden wrote. "This is why the American people cannot be innocent of all the crimes committed by the Americans and Jews against us." Bin Laden, the son of a wealthy Saudi businessman, was the founder of the terror organization al-Qaeda, which he created in 1988 after the Soviet Union withdrew from Afghanistan.
Bin Laden had fought in the conflict against the Soviets. Al-Qaeda grew under bin Laden's leadership, launching deadly attacks and bombing all over the world. This culminated in the September 11, 2001, attacks on the U.S., which killed nearly 3,000 people and injured thousands.
Bin Laden was shot and killed by U.S. Navy SEALs in his compound in Pakistan in 2011. His 2002 letter was written with the clear intent of swaying minds in support of bin Laden and building support for al-Qaeda's actions.
The full transcript of the letter: (Note that the document was written with propagandistic intent from an international terrorist and mass murderer.) In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful, "Permission to fight (against disbelievers) is given to those (believers) who are fought against, because they have been wronged and surely, Allah is Able to give them (believers) victory." [Quran 22:39] "Those who believe, fight in the Cause of Allah, and those who disbelieve, fight in the cause of Taghut (anything worshipped other than Allah e.g. So fight you against the friends of Satan; ever feeble is indeed the plot of Satan."[Quran 4:76] Some American writers have published articles under the title 'On what basis are we fighting?'. These articles have generated a number of responses, some of which adhered to the truth and were based on Islamic Law, and others which have not.
Here we wanted to outline the truth - as an explanation and warning - hoping for Allah's reward, seeking success and support from Him. While seeking Allah's help, we form our reply based on two questions directed at the Americans: (Q1) Why are we fighting and opposing you? Q2)What are we calling you to, and what do we want from you?
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