He got involved in the Afghan war at the end of the 1970s after he visited Peshawar in Pakistan and met with many Afghan leaders including Abdul Rab Sayyaf, Burhanuddin Rabbani, before returning to Saudi Arabia on a fundraising campaign.

In 1982 he went to Afghanistan to participate in a jihad against Soviet forces, receiving the financial support of $3 billion from the CIA with the knowledge of the US administration. He was also financed to buy weapons until the Soviets finally left Afghanistan in 1989.

“The most significant goal in this jihad is to debunk the legend of the superpower, not only in my mind but in the minds of every Muslim,” he said at the time, citing his basic principle for fighting the Russians.

In 1984, Bin Laden founded the Al-Ansar Movement in Peshawar to serve as a reception center for Arabs wishing to join the fighting against the Russians. Over the next two years he opened six camps for the mujahideen.

In 1988, he and his associates established an Al-Qaeda database to register all data about the movement of Arab Afghan fighters. The database became an independent entity.

It was the first reference point for all who came to participate in the jihad and from there they were sent for training and onto the battlefront. Eventually the name Al-Qaeda (base) was attached to anyone that worked with Bin Laden.

He returned to Saudi Arabia in 1989 when the Soviets left Afghanistan. He stayed in the Kingdom for two years until the liberation of Kuwait in 1991. In 1991 he went again to Afghanistan and then to Sudan where he invested in some economic projects.

In 1994 Saudi Arabia withdrew his citizenship and in 1996 he made a call to fight against the Americans and demanded the expulsion of "all kafirs from the Arabian Peninsula" referring to the US forces in the Gulf.

In 1998 he forged an alliance with the Egyptian Islamic Jihad Group led by Muhammad Ayman Al-Zawahari with the name "International Islamic Front" and called for the killing of Americans and Jews.

Bin Laden did not belong to any religious or political organizations. However, he was influenced by Islamic thinkers such as Muhammad Qutb and Abdullah Azzam. He never represented any independent religious organization. To his credit, there are very few speeches, lectures or writings.

On Sept. 7, 2007, Bin Laden warned that the US was on the brink of destruction despite its economic and military power while speaking on a video released to mark the sixth anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks.

On Nov. 29, 2007, Bin Laden in an audio recording urged European countries to stop their alliance with American forces in Afghanistan.

On March 19, 2008, he issued a recorded audio threat to members of the European Union after the publication of cartoons making fun of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).

The next day Bin Laden urged Muslims to continue their struggle against the US forces in Iraq as a means to liberate Israeli-occupied Palestine.

On May 16, 2008, he urged the Arabs in an audio recording to continue their struggle against Israel, describing the Palestine struggle against occupation as the core of the Muslims’ clash against the West.

On May 18, 2008, he urged Muslims on an online audio clip to break the embargo imposed by Israel on Gaza and also to fight against Arab governments that cooperated with Israel.

On Jan. 14, 2009, he reiterated his call for jihad in an audio recording to save Gaza, saying that the global economic crisis had weakened US influence, which would in turn weaken Israel.

On March 14, 2009, Bin Laden accused moderate Arab leaders of colluding with the West against the Muslims. It was aired on Al Jazeera television.

On June 3, 2009 he said in an audio message that US President Barack Obama planted seeds of hatred and revenge toward the US in the Muslim world and warned Americans to be prepared for the consequences. He added in the message that Obama is following the same course taken by predecessor George W. Bush.

On June 4, 2009, he demanded the Muslim world to get ready for a prolonged war against the kafirs and their agents.

On Sept.14, 2009, he warned American people against their administration’s strong relations with Israel, saying it was time for Americans to liberate America from the clutches of neoconservatives and the Israeli lobby. He added: “The cause of our disagreement with the US is its support to Israel that occupies Palestine.”

On Jan 24, 2010, Bin Laden vowed to continue his fight against the US as long as it supported the Israeli occupation. “It is not fair for the US citizens to live in luxury while all our brothers in Gaza are suffering,” he said in the audio recording.

On March 25, 2010, he threatened the US that all captured Americans would be executed if the accused in the Sept. 11 attacks were handed a death sentence.

The last audio record attributed to Bin Laden appeared during the floods in Pakistan, calling for support for flood victims.