The mother of Osama Bin Laden, the architect of 9/11 terrorist attacks, has spoken publicly about her son for the first time.
In an interview with British newspaper the Guardian, Alia Ghanem described him as a “shy boy who was academically capable”.
Speaking from the family’s mansion in Jeddah in Saudi Arabia, Ms Ghanem said her son was brainwashed in his early twenties.
She said her son was radicalized while studying economics at King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah.
She said during his time at university, her son became involved with those linked to the Muslim Brotherhood organisation.
“The people at university changed him. He became a different man,” she said.
“You can call it a cult. They got money for their cause. I would always tell him to stay away from them, and he would never admit to me what he was doing, because he loved me so much.”
‘In denial’
For two decades, Bin Laden served as leader of al-Qaeda, the terrorist group that orchestrated the September 11 attacks in New York and Washington DC.
Nine years later, in 2011, he was killed by Navy SEALs in a raid on his Pakistan hideout.
For years, Bin Laden’s family have refused to talk about him but seven years on from his death, they have broken their silence.
His half-brother Sheikh Ahmad, said his mother remains “in denial” about her son and blames his circle of associates, rather than him for what unfolded.
He also described the family’s shock at learning of his involvement in the 9/11 attacks, saying “we all felt ashamed of him”.
The family say they last saw Osama in Afghanistan in 1999.
They remain one of Saudi Arabia’s most influential and wealthiest families.
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