Osama bin Laden
The Saudi-born militant who mobilized a global terrorist network and orchestrated the deadliest attack on American soil, reshaping 21st-century geopolitics.
1957–2011 (age 54)·Founder of al-Qaeda·Birthday: March 10·Baby Boomers
Biography
Osama bin Laden emerged from immense privilege—the son of a Yemeni-born construction magnate in Saudi Arabia—to become the world's most wanted man. Radicalized during the Soviet-Afghan War in the 1980s, where he helped funnel money and fighters to the mujahideen, he later turned his fury and resources against the West, particularly the United States. In 1988, he founded al-Qaeda, meaning 'The Base,' to coordinate a pan-Islamist jihad. His declaration of war against the U.S. culminated in the meticulously planned September 11, 2001 attacks, which killed nearly 3,000 people. The attacks triggered the U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan, the broader 'War on Terror,' and decades of global military and intelligence focus on counter-terrorism. For nearly a decade, he evaded capture, issuing propaganda tapes from hiding, until he was tracked down and killed by U.S. Navy SEALs at a compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan in 2011.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Osama was born in 1957, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Osama Was Born
The biggest hits of 1957
#1 Movie
The Bridge on the River Kwai
Best Picture
The Bridge on the River Kwai
#1 TV Show
Gunsmoke
Osama's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1957Born
Sputnik launches the Space Age
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $10,550Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"All Shook Up" — Elvis PresleyBest Picture: The Bridge on the River Kwai
1962Started school
Cuban Missile Crisis brings the world to the brink
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,800Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Stranger on the Shore" — Acker BilkBest Picture: Lawrence of Arabia
1970Became a teenager
First Earth Day; The Beatles break up
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $17,000Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Bridge over Troubled Water" — Simon & GarfunkelBest Picture: Patton
1973Could drive
US withdraws from Vietnam; Roe v. Wade decided
Gas: $0.39/galHome: $22,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" — Tony Orlando & DawnBest Picture: The Sting
1975Could vote
Fall of Saigon ends the Vietnam War
Gas: $0.57/galHome: $27,600Min wage: $2.10/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Love Will Keep Us Together" — Captain & TennilleBest Picture: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
1978Turned 21
First test-tube baby born
Gas: $0.63/galHome: $35,300Min wage: $2.65/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Shadow Dancing" — Andy GibbBest Picture: The Deer Hunter
1987Turned 30
Black Monday stock market crash
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $72,400Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Walk Like an Egyptian" — The BanglesBest Picture: The Last Emperor
1997Turned 40
Princess Diana dies in Paris car crash; Harry Potter published
Gas: $1.23/galHome: $104,100Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Candle in the Wind 1997" — Elton JohnBest Picture: Titanic
2007Turned 50
iPhone released; Great Recession begins
Gas: $2.80/galHome: $172,600Min wage: $5.85/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Irreplaceable" — BeyonceBest Picture: No Country for Old Men
2011Died at 54
Osama bin Laden killed; Arab Spring sweeps the Middle East
Gas: $3.53/galHome: $138,400Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Rolling in the Deep" — AdeleBest Picture: The Artist
Key Achievements
- Founded the militant Islamist organization al-Qaeda in 1988, creating a decentralized network for global jihad.
- Orchestrated the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States, which involved the hijacking of four commercial airliners.
- Issued a 1998 fatwa declaring it a religious duty for Muslims to kill Americans and their allies anywhere in the world.
Did You Know?
He was one of over 50 children of Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden, and his inheritance was estimated at around $25 million.
Bin Laden was a fan of Western cowboy movies, reportedly enjoying films like 'The Magnificent Seven.'
He stood at an estimated 6 feet 4 inches (193 cm) to 6 feet 6 inches (198 cm) tall.
In his youth, he married his first cousin, Najwa Ghanem, when he was 17 and she was 14.
““The winds of faith have come.””
