9/11 Attacks: Osama Bin Laden Fast Facts | in PICS

Osama bin Laden was born in Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh and his full name was Osama bin Muhammad bin Awad bin Laden.

He had five wives and more than 20 children.

Laden was the 17th of 52 children of the construction magnate Muhammad Awad bin Laden, who ran the company Saudi Binladin Group.

He married for the first time at the age of 17 to a Syrian cousin, Najwa.

In 1979, Laden travelled to Afghanistan to join the jihad against the Soviet Union and remained there for a decade.

In 1988, Bin Laden founded al Qaeda, a militant group with the core goal of waging global jihad.

In August 1990, following the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, US troops arrived in Saudi Arabia. Bin Laden was reportedly outraged at their presence and soon began to target the US for its presence near Mecca and Medina.

Following the September 11 attacks in 2001, the US government named bin Laden as a prime suspect.

In May 2011, US forces raided a walled and fortified compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, and killed Laden.