CINXE.COM

<!DOCTYPE html> <html class="client-nojs vector-feature-language-in-header-enabled vector-feature-language-in-main-page-header-disabled vector-feature-sticky-header-disabled vector-feature-page-tools-pinned-disabled vector-feature-toc-pinned-clientpref-1 vector-feature-main-menu-pinned-disabled vector-feature-limited-width-clientpref-1 vector-feature-limited-width-content-disabled vector-feature-custom-font-size-clientpref-1 vector-feature-appearance-pinned-clientpref-1 vector-feature-night-mode-enabled skin-theme-clientpref-day vector-toc-not-available" lang="en" dir="ltr"> <head> <meta charset="UTF-8"> <title>View source for Allegations of CIA assistance to Osama bin Laden - Wikipedia</title> <script>(function(){var className="client-js vector-feature-language-in-header-enabled vector-feature-language-in-main-page-header-disabled vector-feature-sticky-header-disabled vector-feature-page-tools-pinned-disabled vector-feature-toc-pinned-clientpref-1 vector-feature-main-menu-pinned-disabled vector-feature-limited-width-clientpref-1 vector-feature-limited-width-content-disabled vector-feature-custom-font-size-clientpref-1 vector-feature-appearance-pinned-clientpref-1 vector-feature-night-mode-enabled skin-theme-clientpref-day vector-toc-not-available";var cookie=document.cookie.match(/(?:^|; )enwikimwclientpreferences=([^;]+)/);if(cookie){cookie[1].split('%2C').forEach(function(pref){className=className.replace(new RegExp('(^| )'+pref.replace(/-clientpref-\w+$|[^\w-]+/g,'')+'-clientpref-\\w+( |$)'),'$1'+pref+'$2');});}document.documentElement.className=className;}());RLCONF={"wgBreakFrames":true,"wgSeparatorTransformTable":["",""],"wgDigitTransformTable":["",""],"wgDefaultDateFormat": "dmy","wgMonthNames":["","January","February","March","April","May","June","July","August","September","October","November","December"],"wgRequestId":"c3b596c3-6ca3-4e32-b99a-d472a03d294c","wgCanonicalNamespace":"","wgCanonicalSpecialPageName":false,"wgNamespaceNumber":0,"wgPageName":"Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden","wgTitle":"Allegations of CIA assistance to Osama bin Laden","wgCurRevisionId":1250991774,"wgRevisionId":0,"wgArticleId":14005918,"wgIsArticle":false,"wgIsRedirect":false,"wgAction":"edit","wgUserName":null,"wgUserGroups":["*"],"wgCategories":[],"wgPageViewLanguage":"en","wgPageContentLanguage":"en","wgPageContentModel":"wikitext","wgRelevantPageName":"Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden","wgRelevantArticleId":14005918,"wgIsProbablyEditable":true,"wgRelevantPageIsProbablyEditable":true,"wgRestrictionEdit":[],"wgRestrictionMove":[],"wgNoticeProject":"wikipedia","wgCiteReferencePreviewsActive":false,"wgFlaggedRevsParams":{"tags":{"status":{ "levels":1}}},"wgMediaViewerOnClick":true,"wgMediaViewerEnabledByDefault":true,"wgPopupsFlags":0,"wgVisualEditor":{"pageLanguageCode":"en","pageLanguageDir":"ltr","pageVariantFallbacks":"en"},"wgMFDisplayWikibaseDescriptions":{"search":true,"watchlist":true,"tagline":false,"nearby":true},"wgWMESchemaEditAttemptStepOversample":false,"wgWMEPageLength":30000,"wgRelatedArticlesCompat":[],"wgCentralAuthMobileDomain":false,"wgEditSubmitButtonLabelPublish":true,"wgULSPosition":"interlanguage","wgULSisCompactLinksEnabled":false,"wgVector2022LanguageInHeader":true,"wgULSisLanguageSelectorEmpty":false,"wgCheckUserClientHintsHeadersJsApi":["brands","architecture","bitness","fullVersionList","mobile","model","platform","platformVersion"],"GEHomepageSuggestedEditsEnableTopics":true,"wgGETopicsMatchModeEnabled":false,"wgGEStructuredTaskRejectionReasonTextInputEnabled":false,"wgGELevelingUpEnabledForUser":false};RLSTATE={"ext.globalCssJs.user.styles":"ready","site.styles":"ready","user.styles": "ready","ext.globalCssJs.user":"ready","user":"ready","user.options":"loading","skins.vector.search.codex.styles":"ready","skins.vector.styles":"ready","skins.vector.icons":"ready","jquery.makeCollapsible.styles":"ready","ext.charinsert.styles":"ready","ext.wikimediamessages.styles":"ready","ext.visualEditor.desktopArticleTarget.noscript":"ready","ext.uls.interlanguage":"ready","ext.wikimediaBadges":"ready"};RLPAGEMODULES=["mediawiki.action.edit.collapsibleFooter","site","mediawiki.page.ready","jquery.makeCollapsible","skins.vector.js","ext.centralNotice.geoIP","ext.charinsert","ext.gadget.ReferenceTooltips","ext.gadget.charinsert","ext.gadget.extra-toolbar-buttons","ext.gadget.refToolbar","ext.gadget.switcher","ext.urlShortener.toolbar","ext.centralauth.centralautologin","mmv.bootstrap","ext.popups","ext.visualEditor.desktopArticleTarget.init","ext.visualEditor.targetLoader","ext.echo.centralauth","ext.eventLogging","ext.wikimediaEvents","ext.navigationTiming","ext.uls.interface", "ext.cx.eventlogging.campaigns","ext.checkUser.clientHints","ext.growthExperiments.SuggestedEditSession","wikibase.sidebar.tracking"];</script> <script>(RLQ=window.RLQ||[]).push(function(){mw.loader.impl(function(){return["user.options@12s5i",function($,jQuery,require,module){mw.user.tokens.set({"patrolToken":"+\\","watchToken":"+\\","csrfToken":"+\\"}); }];});});</script> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/w/load.php?lang=en&modules=ext.charinsert.styles%7Cext.uls.interlanguage%7Cext.visualEditor.desktopArticleTarget.noscript%7Cext.wikimediaBadges%7Cext.wikimediamessages.styles%7Cjquery.makeCollapsible.styles%7Cskins.vector.icons%2Cstyles%7Cskins.vector.search.codex.styles&only=styles&skin=vector-2022"> <script async="" src="/w/load.php?lang=en&modules=startup&only=scripts&raw=1&skin=vector-2022"></script> <meta name="ResourceLoaderDynamicStyles" content=""> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/w/load.php?lang=en&modules=site.styles&only=styles&skin=vector-2022"> <meta name="generator" content="MediaWiki 1.44.0-wmf.4"> <meta name="referrer" content="origin"> <meta name="referrer" content="origin-when-cross-origin"> <meta name="robots" content="noindex,nofollow,max-image-preview:standard"> <meta name="format-detection" content="telephone=no"> <meta property="og:image" content="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ca/Osama_bin_Laden_portrait.jpg"> <meta property="og:image:width" content="1200"> <meta property="og:image:height" content="1452"> <meta property="og:image" content="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ca/Osama_bin_Laden_portrait.jpg"> <meta property="og:image:width" content="800"> <meta property="og:image:height" content="968"> <meta property="og:image:width" content="640"> <meta property="og:image:height" content="774"> <meta name="viewport" content="width=1120"> <meta property="og:title" content="View source for Allegations of CIA assistance to Osama bin Laden - Wikipedia"> <meta property="og:type" content="website"> <link rel="preconnect" href="//upload.wikimedia.org"> <link rel="alternate" media="only screen and (max-width: 640px)" href="//en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden"> <link rel="alternate" type="application/x-wiki" title="Edit this page" href="/w/index.php?title=Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden&action=edit"> <link rel="apple-touch-icon" href="/static/apple-touch/wikipedia.png"> <link rel="icon" href="/static/favicon/wikipedia.ico"> <link rel="search" type="application/opensearchdescription+xml" href="/w/rest.php/v1/search" title="Wikipedia (en)"> <link rel="EditURI" type="application/rsd+xml" href="//en.wikipedia.org/w/api.php?action=rsd"> <link rel="canonical" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden"> <link rel="license" href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en"> <link rel="alternate" type="application/atom+xml" title="Wikipedia Atom feed" href="/w/index.php?title=Special:RecentChanges&feed=atom"> <link rel="dns-prefetch" href="//login.wikimedia.org"> </head> <body class="skin--responsive skin-vector skin-vector-search-vue mediawiki ltr sitedir-ltr mw-hide-empty-elt ns-0 ns-subject mw-editable page-Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden rootpage-Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden skin-vector-2022 action-edit"><a class="mw-jump-link" href="#bodyContent">Jump to content</a> <div class="vector-header-container"> <header class="vector-header mw-header"> <div class="vector-header-start"> <nav class="vector-main-menu-landmark" aria-label="Site"> <div id="vector-main-menu-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown vector-main-menu-dropdown vector-button-flush-left vector-button-flush-right" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-main-menu-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-main-menu-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Main menu" > <label id="vector-main-menu-dropdown-label" for="vector-main-menu-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-menu mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-menu"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Main menu</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-main-menu-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> <div id="vector-main-menu" class="vector-main-menu vector-pinnable-element"> <div class="vector-pinnable-header vector-main-menu-pinnable-header vector-pinnable-header-unpinned" data-feature-name="main-menu-pinned" data-pinnable-element-id="vector-main-menu" data-pinned-container-id="vector-main-menu-pinned-container" data-unpinned-container-id="vector-main-menu-unpinned-container" > <div class="vector-pinnable-header-label">Main menu</div> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-pin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-main-menu.pin">move to sidebar</button> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-unpin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-main-menu.unpin">hide</button> </div> <div id="p-navigation" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-navigation" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Navigation </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="n-mainpage-description" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Main_Page" title="Visit the main page [z]" accesskey="z"><span>Main page</span></a></li><li id="n-contents" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Contents" title="Guides to browsing Wikipedia"><span>Contents</span></a></li><li id="n-currentevents" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Portal:Current_events" title="Articles related to current events"><span>Current events</span></a></li><li id="n-randompage" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:Random" title="Visit a randomly selected article [x]" accesskey="x"><span>Random article</span></a></li><li id="n-aboutsite" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:About" title="Learn about Wikipedia and how it works"><span>About Wikipedia</span></a></li><li id="n-contactpage" class="mw-list-item"><a href="//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Contact_us" title="How to contact Wikipedia"><span>Contact us</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-interaction" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-interaction" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Contribute </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="n-help" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Help:Contents" title="Guidance on how to use and edit Wikipedia"><span>Help</span></a></li><li id="n-introduction" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Help:Introduction" title="Learn how to edit Wikipedia"><span>Learn to edit</span></a></li><li id="n-portal" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Community_portal" title="The hub for editors"><span>Community portal</span></a></li><li id="n-recentchanges" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:RecentChanges" title="A list of recent changes to Wikipedia [r]" accesskey="r"><span>Recent changes</span></a></li><li id="n-upload" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:File_upload_wizard" title="Add images or other media for use on Wikipedia"><span>Upload file</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </nav> <a href="/wiki/Main_Page" class="mw-logo"> <img class="mw-logo-icon" src="/static/images/icons/wikipedia.png" alt="" aria-hidden="true" height="50" width="50"> <span class="mw-logo-container skin-invert"> <img class="mw-logo-wordmark" alt="Wikipedia" src="/static/images/mobile/copyright/wikipedia-wordmark-en.svg" style="width: 7.5em; height: 1.125em;"> <img class="mw-logo-tagline" alt="The Free Encyclopedia" src="/static/images/mobile/copyright/wikipedia-tagline-en.svg" width="117" height="13" style="width: 7.3125em; height: 0.8125em;"> </span> </a> </div> <div class="vector-header-end"> <div id="p-search" role="search" class="vector-search-box-vue vector-search-box-collapses vector-search-box-show-thumbnail vector-search-box-auto-expand-width vector-search-box"> <a href="/wiki/Special:Search" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only search-toggle" title="Search Wikipedia [f]" accesskey="f"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-search mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-search"></span> <span>Search</span> </a> <div class="vector-typeahead-search-container"> <div class="cdx-typeahead-search cdx-typeahead-search--show-thumbnail cdx-typeahead-search--auto-expand-width"> <form action="/w/index.php" id="searchform" class="cdx-search-input cdx-search-input--has-end-button"> <div id="simpleSearch" class="cdx-search-input__input-wrapper" data-search-loc="header-moved"> <div class="cdx-text-input cdx-text-input--has-start-icon"> <input class="cdx-text-input__input" type="search" name="search" placeholder="Search Wikipedia" aria-label="Search Wikipedia" autocapitalize="sentences" title="Search Wikipedia [f]" accesskey="f" id="searchInput" > <span class="cdx-text-input__icon cdx-text-input__start-icon"></span> </div> <input type="hidden" name="title" value="Special:Search"> </div> <button class="cdx-button cdx-search-input__end-button">Search</button> </form> </div> </div> </div> <nav class="vector-user-links vector-user-links-wide" aria-label="Personal tools"> <div class="vector-user-links-main"> <div id="p-vector-user-menu-preferences" class="vector-menu mw-portlet emptyPortlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-vector-user-menu-userpage" class="vector-menu mw-portlet emptyPortlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> </div> </div> <nav class="vector-appearance-landmark" aria-label="Appearance"> <div id="vector-appearance-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown " title="Change the appearance of the page's font size, width, and color" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-appearance-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-appearance-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Appearance" > <label id="vector-appearance-dropdown-label" for="vector-appearance-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-appearance mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-appearance"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Appearance</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-appearance-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> </div> </div> </div> </nav> <div id="p-vector-user-menu-notifications" class="vector-menu mw-portlet emptyPortlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-vector-user-menu-overflow" class="vector-menu mw-portlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="pt-sitesupport-2" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item user-links-collapsible-item"><a data-mw="interface" href="https://donate.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FundraiserRedirector?utm_source=donate&utm_medium=sidebar&utm_campaign=C13_en.wikipedia.org&uselang=en" class=""><span>Donate</span></a> </li> <li id="pt-createaccount-2" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item user-links-collapsible-item"><a data-mw="interface" href="/w/index.php?title=Special:CreateAccount&returnto=Allegations+of+CIA+assistance+to+Osama+bin+Laden&returntoquery=action%3Dedit" title="You are encouraged to create an account and log in; however, it is not mandatory" class=""><span>Create account</span></a> </li> <li id="pt-login-2" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item user-links-collapsible-item"><a data-mw="interface" href="/w/index.php?title=Special:UserLogin&returnto=Allegations+of+CIA+assistance+to+Osama+bin+Laden&returntoquery=action%3Dedit" title="You're encouraged to log in; however, it's not mandatory. [o]" accesskey="o" class=""><span>Log in</span></a> </li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> <div id="vector-user-links-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown vector-user-menu vector-button-flush-right vector-user-menu-logged-out" title="Log in and more options" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-user-links-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-user-links-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Personal tools" > <label id="vector-user-links-dropdown-label" for="vector-user-links-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-ellipsis mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-ellipsis"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Personal tools</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="p-personal" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-personal user-links-collapsible-item" title="User menu" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="pt-sitesupport" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="https://donate.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FundraiserRedirector?utm_source=donate&utm_medium=sidebar&utm_campaign=C13_en.wikipedia.org&uselang=en"><span>Donate</span></a></li><li id="pt-createaccount" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:CreateAccount&returnto=Allegations+of+CIA+assistance+to+Osama+bin+Laden&returntoquery=action%3Dedit" title="You are encouraged to create an account and log in; however, it is not mandatory"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-userAdd mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-userAdd"></span> <span>Create account</span></a></li><li id="pt-login" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:UserLogin&returnto=Allegations+of+CIA+assistance+to+Osama+bin+Laden&returntoquery=action%3Dedit" title="You're encouraged to log in; however, it's not mandatory. [o]" accesskey="o"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-logIn mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-logIn"></span> <span>Log in</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-user-menu-anon-editor" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-user-menu-anon-editor" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Pages for logged out editors <a href="/wiki/Help:Introduction" aria-label="Learn more about editing"><span>learn more</span></a> </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="pt-anoncontribs" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:MyContributions" title="A list of edits made from this IP address [y]" accesskey="y"><span>Contributions</span></a></li><li id="pt-anontalk" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:MyTalk" title="Discussion about edits from this IP address [n]" accesskey="n"><span>Talk</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </header> </div> <div class="mw-page-container"> <div class="mw-page-container-inner"> <div class="vector-sitenotice-container"> <div id="siteNotice"></div> </div> <div class="vector-column-start"> <div class="vector-main-menu-container"> <div id="mw-navigation"> <nav id="mw-panel" class="vector-main-menu-landmark" aria-label="Site"> <div id="vector-main-menu-pinned-container" class="vector-pinned-container"> </div> </nav> </div> </div> </div> <div class="mw-content-container"> <main id="content" class="mw-body"> <header class="mw-body-header vector-page-titlebar"> <h1 id="firstHeading" class="firstHeading mw-first-heading">View source for Allegations of CIA assistance to Osama bin Laden</h1> <div id="p-lang-btn" class="vector-dropdown mw-portlet mw-portlet-lang" > <input type="checkbox" id="p-lang-btn-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-p-lang-btn" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox mw-interlanguage-selector" aria-label="This article exist only in this language. Add the article for other languages" > <label id="p-lang-btn-label" for="p-lang-btn-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--action-progressive mw-portlet-lang-heading-0" aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-language-progressive mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-language-progressive"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Add languages</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> <div class="after-portlet after-portlet-lang"><span class="uls-after-portlet-link"></span></div> </div> </div> </div> </header> <div class="vector-page-toolbar"> <div class="vector-page-toolbar-container"> <div id="left-navigation"> <nav aria-label="Namespaces"> <div id="p-associated-pages" class="vector-menu vector-menu-tabs mw-portlet mw-portlet-associated-pages" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="ca-nstab-main" class="selected vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden" title="View the content page [c]" accesskey="c"><span>Article</span></a></li><li id="ca-talk" class="vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Talk:Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden" rel="discussion" title="Discuss improvements to the content page [t]" accesskey="t"><span>Talk</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="vector-variants-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown emptyPortlet" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-variants-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-variants-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Change language variant" > <label id="vector-variants-dropdown-label" for="vector-variants-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet" aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">English</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="p-variants" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-variants emptyPortlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> <div id="right-navigation" class="vector-collapsible"> <nav aria-label="Views"> <div id="p-views" class="vector-menu vector-menu-tabs mw-portlet mw-portlet-views" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="ca-view" class="vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden"><span>Read</span></a></li><li id="ca-edit" class="selected vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden&action=edit" title="Edit this page"><span>Edit</span></a></li><li id="ca-history" class="vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden&action=history" title="Past revisions of this page [h]" accesskey="h"><span>View history</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </nav> <nav class="vector-page-tools-landmark" aria-label="Page tools"> <div id="vector-page-tools-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown vector-page-tools-dropdown" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-page-tools-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-page-tools-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Tools" > <label id="vector-page-tools-dropdown-label" for="vector-page-tools-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet" aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Tools</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-page-tools-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> <div id="vector-page-tools" class="vector-page-tools vector-pinnable-element"> <div class="vector-pinnable-header vector-page-tools-pinnable-header vector-pinnable-header-unpinned" data-feature-name="page-tools-pinned" data-pinnable-element-id="vector-page-tools" data-pinned-container-id="vector-page-tools-pinned-container" data-unpinned-container-id="vector-page-tools-unpinned-container" > <div class="vector-pinnable-header-label">Tools</div> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-pin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-page-tools.pin">move to sidebar</button> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-unpin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-page-tools.unpin">hide</button> </div> <div id="p-cactions" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-cactions emptyPortlet vector-has-collapsible-items" title="More options" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Actions </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="ca-more-view" class="vector-more-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden"><span>Read</span></a></li><li id="ca-more-edit" class="selected vector-more-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden&action=edit" title="Edit this page [e]" accesskey="e"><span>Edit</span></a></li><li id="ca-more-history" class="vector-more-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden&action=history"><span>View history</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-tb" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-tb" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> General </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="t-whatlinkshere" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:WhatLinksHere/Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden" title="List of all English Wikipedia pages containing links to this page [j]" accesskey="j"><span>What links here</span></a></li><li id="t-recentchangeslinked" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:RecentChangesLinked/Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden" rel="nofollow" title="Recent changes in pages linked from this page [k]" accesskey="k"><span>Related changes</span></a></li><li id="t-upload" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:File_Upload_Wizard" title="Upload files [u]" accesskey="u"><span>Upload file</span></a></li><li id="t-specialpages" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:SpecialPages" title="A list of all special pages [q]" accesskey="q"><span>Special pages</span></a></li><li id="t-info" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden&action=info" title="More information about this page"><span>Page information</span></a></li><li id="t-urlshortener" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:UrlShortener&url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fw%2Findex.php%3Ftitle%3DAllegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden%26action%3Dedit"><span>Get shortened URL</span></a></li><li id="t-urlshortener-qrcode" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:QrCode&url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fw%2Findex.php%3Ftitle%3DAllegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden%26action%3Dedit"><span>Download QR code</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-wikibase-otherprojects" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-wikibase-otherprojects" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> In other projects </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="t-wikibase" class="wb-otherproject-link wb-otherproject-wikibase-dataitem mw-list-item"><a href="https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Special:EntityPage/Q5011563" title="Structured data on this page hosted by Wikidata [g]" accesskey="g"><span>Wikidata item</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </div> </div> <div class="vector-column-end"> <div class="vector-sticky-pinned-container"> <nav class="vector-page-tools-landmark" aria-label="Page tools"> <div id="vector-page-tools-pinned-container" class="vector-pinned-container"> </div> </nav> <nav class="vector-appearance-landmark" aria-label="Appearance"> <div id="vector-appearance-pinned-container" class="vector-pinned-container"> <div id="vector-appearance" class="vector-appearance vector-pinnable-element"> <div class="vector-pinnable-header vector-appearance-pinnable-header vector-pinnable-header-pinned" data-feature-name="appearance-pinned" data-pinnable-element-id="vector-appearance" data-pinned-container-id="vector-appearance-pinned-container" data-unpinned-container-id="vector-appearance-unpinned-container" > <div class="vector-pinnable-header-label">Appearance</div> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-pin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-appearance.pin">move to sidebar</button> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-unpin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-appearance.unpin">hide</button> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </div> <div id="bodyContent" class="vector-body" aria-labelledby="firstHeading" data-mw-ve-target-container> <div class="vector-body-before-content"> <div class="mw-indicators"> </div> </div> <div id="contentSub"><div id="mw-content-subtitle">← <a href="/wiki/Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden" title="Allegations of CIA assistance to Osama bin Laden">Allegations of CIA assistance to Osama bin Laden</a></div></div> <div id="mw-content-text" class="mw-body-content"><p>You do not have permission to edit this page, for the following reasons: </p> <ul class="permissions-errors"><li class="mw-permissionerror-blockedtext"> <div id="mw-blocked-text" style="border: 1px solid #AAA; background-color: var(--background-color-warning-subtle, ivory); color: inherit; padding: 1.5em; width: 100%; box-sizing: border-box;"> <div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 26px;"><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Stop_hand_nuvola.svg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/f1/Stop_hand_nuvola.svg/50px-Stop_hand_nuvola.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="50" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/f1/Stop_hand_nuvola.svg/75px-Stop_hand_nuvola.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/f1/Stop_hand_nuvola.svg/100px-Stop_hand_nuvola.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="240" data-file-height="240" /></a></span><b> This IP address has been <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Blocking_policy" title="Wikipedia:Blocking policy">blocked</a> from <i>editing</i> Wikipedia.</b></span><br /><span style="font-size: 18px;">This does not affect your ability to <i>read</i> Wikipedia pages.</span></div><div class="paragraphbreak" style="margin-top:0.5em"></div><b>Most people who see this message have done nothing wrong.</b> Some kinds of blocks restrict editing from specific service providers or telecom companies in response to recent abuse or vandalism, and can sometimes affect other users who are unrelated to that abuse. Review the information below for assistance if you do not believe that you have done anything wrong.<div class="paragraphbreak" style="margin-top:0.5em"></div> <p>The IP address or range 8.222.128.0/17 has been <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Blocking_policy" title="Wikipedia:Blocking policy">blocked</a> by <a href="/wiki/User:L235" title="User:L235">‪L235‬</a> for the following reason(s): </p> <div style="padding:10px; background:var(--background-color-base, white); color:inherit; border:1px #666 solid;"> <div class="user-block colocation-webhost" style="margin-bottom: 0.5em; background-color: #ffefd5; border: 1px solid #AAA; padding: 0.7em;"> <figure class="mw-halign-left" typeof="mw:File"><span><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/53/Server-multiple.svg/40px-Server-multiple.svg.png" decoding="async" width="40" height="57" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/53/Server-multiple.svg/60px-Server-multiple.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/53/Server-multiple.svg/80px-Server-multiple.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="744" data-file-height="1052" /></span><figcaption></figcaption></figure><b>The <a href="/wiki/IP_address" title="IP address">IP address</a> that you are currently using has been blocked because it is believed to be a <a href="/wiki/Web_hosting_service" title="Web hosting service">web host provider</a> or <a href="/wiki/Colocation_centre" title="Colocation centre">colocation provider</a>.</b> To prevent abuse, <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Open_proxies" title="Wikipedia:Open proxies">web hosts and colocation providers may be blocked</a> from editing Wikipedia. <div style="border-top: 1px solid #AAA; clear: both">You will not be able to edit Wikipedia using a web host or colocation provider because it hides your IP address, much like a <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Open_proxies" title="Wikipedia:Open proxies">proxy</a> or <a href="/wiki/Virtual_private_network" title="Virtual private network">VPN</a>. <p><b>We recommend that you attempt to use another connection to edit.</b> For example, if you use a proxy or VPN to connect to the internet, turn it off when editing Wikipedia. If you edit using a mobile connection, try using a Wi-Fi connection, and vice versa. If you are using a corporate internet connection, switch to a different Wi-Fi network. If you have a Wikipedia account, please log in. </p><p>If you do not have any other way to edit Wikipedia, you will need to <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:IP_block_exemption#Requesting_and_granting_exemption" title="Wikipedia:IP block exemption">request an IP block exemption</a>. </p> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1214851843">.mw-parser-output .hidden-begin{box-sizing:border-box;width:100%;padding:5px;border:none;font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .hidden-title{font-weight:bold;line-height:1.6;text-align:left}.mw-parser-output .hidden-content{text-align:left}@media all and (max-width:500px){.mw-parser-output .hidden-begin{width:auto!important;clear:none!important;float:none!important}}</style><div class="hidden-begin mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style=""><div class="hidden-title skin-nightmode-reset-color" style="text-align:center;">How to appeal if you are confident that your connection does not use a colocation provider's IP address:</div><div class="hidden-content mw-collapsible-content" style=""> If you are confident that you are not using a web host, you may <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Appealing_a_block" title="Wikipedia:Appealing a block">appeal this block</a> by adding the following text on your <a href="/wiki/Help:Talk_pages" title="Help:Talk pages">talk page</a>: <code>{{<a href="/wiki/Template:Unblock" title="Template:Unblock">unblock</a>|reason=Caught by a colocation web host block but this host or IP is not a web host. My IP address is _______. <i>Place any further information here.</i> ~~~~}}</code>. <b>You must fill in the blank with your IP address for this block to be investigated.</b> Your IP address can be determined <span class="plainlinks"><b><a class="external text" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Get_my_IP_address?withJS=MediaWiki:Get-my-ip.js">here</a></b></span>. Alternatively, if you wish to keep your IP address private you can use the <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Unblock_Ticket_Request_System" title="Wikipedia:Unblock Ticket Request System">unblock ticket request system</a>. There are several reasons you might be editing using the IP address of a web host or colocation provider (such as if you are using VPN software or a business network); please use this method of appeal only if you think your IP address is in fact not a web host or colocation provider.</div></div> <p><span class="sysop-show" style="font-size: 85%;"><span style="border:#707070 solid 1px;background-color:#ffe0e0;padding:2px"><b>Administrators:</b></span> The <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:IP_block_exemption" title="Wikipedia:IP block exemption">IP block exemption</a> user right should only be applied to allow users to edit using web host in exceptional circumstances, and requests should usually be directed to the functionaries team via email. If you intend to give the IPBE user right, a <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:CheckUser" title="Wikipedia:CheckUser">CheckUser</a> needs to take a look at the account. This can be requested most easily at <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:SPI#Quick_CheckUser_requests" class="mw-redirect" title="Wikipedia:SPI">SPI Quick Checkuser Requests</a>. <b>Unblocking</b> an IP or IP range with this template <b>is highly discouraged</b> without at least contacting the blocking administrator.</span> </p> </div></div> </div> <p>This block will expire on 18:23, 24 August 2026. Your current IP address is 8.222.208.146. </p> <div class="paragraphbreak" style="margin-top:0.5em"></div><div style="font-size: 16px;"> <p>Even when blocked, you will <i>usually</i> still be able to edit your <a href="/wiki/Special:MyTalk" title="Special:MyTalk">user talk page</a>, as well as <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Emailing_users" title="Wikipedia:Emailing users">email</a> administrators and other editors. </p> </div> <div class="paragraphbreak" style="margin-top:0.5em"></div><div style="font-size: 16px;"> <p>For information on how to proceed, please read the <b><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Appealing_a_block#Common_questions" title="Wikipedia:Appealing a block">FAQ for blocked users</a></b> and the <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Appealing_a_block" title="Wikipedia:Appealing a block">guideline on block appeals</a>. The <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Guide_to_appealing_blocks" title="Wikipedia:Guide to appealing blocks">guide to appealing blocks</a> may also be helpful. </p> </div> <p>Other useful links: <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Blocking_policy" title="Wikipedia:Blocking policy">Blocking policy</a> · <a href="/wiki/Help:I_have_been_blocked" title="Help:I have been blocked">Help:I have been blocked</a> </p> </div></li><li class="mw-permissionerror-globalblocking-blockedtext-range"> <div id="mw-blocked-text" style="border: 1px solid #AAA; background-color: var(--background-color-warning-subtle, ivory); color: inherit; padding: 1.5em; width: 100%; box-sizing: border-box;"> <div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 26px;"><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Stop_hand_nuvola.svg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/f1/Stop_hand_nuvola.svg/50px-Stop_hand_nuvola.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="50" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/f1/Stop_hand_nuvola.svg/75px-Stop_hand_nuvola.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/f1/Stop_hand_nuvola.svg/100px-Stop_hand_nuvola.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="240" data-file-height="240" /></a></span><b> This IP address range has been <a href="https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Global_blocks" class="extiw" title="m:Global blocks">globally blocked</a>.</b></span><br /><span style="font-size: 18px;">This does not affect your ability to <i>read</i> Wikipedia pages.</span></div><div class="paragraphbreak" style="margin-top:0.5em"></div><b>Most people who see this message have done nothing wrong.</b> Some kinds of blocks restrict editing from specific service providers or telecom companies in response to recent abuse or vandalism, and can sometimes affect other users who are unrelated to that abuse. Review the information below for assistance if you do not believe that you have done anything wrong.<div class="paragraphbreak" style="margin-top:0.5em"></div><div class="paragraphbreak" style="margin-top:0.5em"></div> <p>This block affects editing on all Wikimedia wikis. </p><p>The IP address or range 8.222.128.0/17 has been globally <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Blocking_policy" title="Wikipedia:Blocking policy">blocked</a> by <a href="/wiki/User:Jon_Kolbert" title="User:Jon Kolbert">‪Jon Kolbert‬</a> for the following reason(s): </p> <div style="padding:10px; background:var(--background-color-base, white); color:inherit; border:1px #666 solid;"> <p><a href="https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/NOP" class="extiw" title="m:Special:MyLanguage/NOP">Open proxy/Webhost</a>: See the <a href="https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/WM:OP/H" class="extiw" title="m:WM:OP/H">help page</a> if you are affected </p> </div> <p>This block will expire on 15:12, 27 August 2028. Your current IP address is 8.222.208.146. </p> <div class="paragraphbreak" style="margin-top:0.5em"></div><div style="font-size: 16px;"> <p>Even while globally blocked, you will <i>usually</i> still be able to edit pages on <a href="https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/" class="extiw" title="m:">Meta-Wiki</a>. </p> </div> <div class="paragraphbreak" style="margin-top:0.5em"></div><div style="font-size: 16px;"> <p>If you believe you were blocked by mistake, you can find additional information and instructions in the <a href="https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/No_open_proxies" class="extiw" title="m:Special:MyLanguage/No open proxies">No open proxies</a> global policy. Otherwise, to discuss the block please <a href="https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Steward_requests/Global" class="extiw" title="m:Steward requests/Global">post a request for review on Meta-Wiki</a>. You could also send an email to the <a href="https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Stewards" class="extiw" title="m:Special:MyLanguage/Stewards">stewards</a> <a href="https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/VRT" class="extiw" title="m:Special:MyLanguage/VRT">VRT</a> queue at <kbd>stewards@wikimedia.org</kbd> including all above details. </p> </div> <p>Other useful links: <a href="https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Global_blocks" class="extiw" title="m:Global blocks">Global blocks</a> · <a href="/wiki/Help:I_have_been_blocked" title="Help:I have been blocked">Help:I have been blocked</a> </p> </div></li></ul><hr /> <div id="viewsourcetext">You can view and copy the source of this page:</div><textarea readonly="" accesskey="," id="wpTextbox1" cols="80" rows="25" style="" class="mw-editfont-monospace" lang="en" dir="ltr" name="wpTextbox1">{{Short description|none}} [[File:Osama bin Laden portrait.jpg|Bin Laden {{circa|1997–1998}}|thumb]] {{Osama bin Laden series}} Several sources have alleged that the [[Central Intelligence Agency]] (CIA) had ties with [[Osama bin Laden]]'s faction of "[[Afghan Arab]]" fighters when it armed [[Mujahideen]] groups to fight the [[Soviet Union]] during the [[Soviet–Afghan War]]. About the same time as the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, the United States began collaborating with [[Pakistan]]'s [[Inter-Services Intelligence]] (ISI) to provide several hundred million dollars a year in aid to the [[Afghan mujahideen#Afghanistan|Afghan Mujahideen]] insurgents fighting the Afghan pro-Soviet government and [[Soviet–Afghan War|the Soviet Army]] in [[Operation Cyclone]]. Along with native Afghan mujahideen were Muslim volunteers from other countries, popularly known as "[[Afghan Arabs]]". The most famous of the Afghan Arabs was [[Osama bin Laden]], known at the time as a wealthy and pious Saudi who provided his own money and helped raise millions from other wealthy persian Gulf Arabs. When the war ended, bin Laden organized the [[al-Qaeda]] organization to carry on armed [[jihad]] against other countries, primarily against the [[United States]]. A number of analysts, journalists, and government officials have described Al-Qaeda attacks as "[[Blowback (intelligence)|blowback]]" or an [[unintended consequence]] of American aid to the mujahideen. In response, the United States government, U.S. government officials involved in the operation, as well as several journalists and academics have denied this theory. They maintain the aid was given out by the Pakistani ISI, that it went to Afghan and not foreign mujahideen, and that there was no contact between the Afghan Arabs (foreign mujahideen) and the CIA and other American officials, let alone the arming, training, coaching, or indoctrination. Declassified U.S. government documents contain no record of direct contact between the CIA and bin Laden.<ref name="Coll p. 87"/> On the other hand, several other journalists and academics have documented that bin Laden and the Afghan Arabs at least informally cooperated with the ISI, thus indirectly benefiting from the CIA's funding. According to bin Laden himself, Arab volunteers recruited at his Pakistani-based camp underwent training led by Pakistani and American officers, with the weapons provided by the U.S. and funds provided by Saudi Arabia, however elsewhere bin Laden would deny ever witnessing American aid. Bin Laden's key Afghan allies during the war—[[Jalaluddin Haqqani]] and [[Gulbuddin Hekmatyar]]—were some of the CIA's greatest beneficiaries, with Haqqani being backed directly by the CIA (without ISI mediation), while simultaneously contributing to the formation and growth of bin Laden's group. The CIA backed an ISI initiative to recruit and train foreign mujahideen from around the globe, funded Islamic charitable organizations which recruited foreign mujahideen, and at one point even contemplated the formation of an "[[International Brigades|international brigade]]" composed of Afghan Arabs. ==Allegations== In a 2004 article entitled "Al-Qaeda's origins and links", the [[BBC]] wrote that "[d]uring the anti-Soviet war Bin Laden and his fighters received American and Saudi funding. Some analysts believe Bin Laden himself had security training from the CIA.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/1670089.stm|title=Al-Qaeda's origins and links|date=2004|work=[[BBC News]]}}</ref> In an article in [[The Guardian]], [[Robin Cook]], the British [[Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs|Foreign Secretary]] from 1997 to 2001, would state that: <blockquote>Bin Laden was, though, a product of a monumental miscalculation by western security agencies. Throughout the 80s he was armed by the CIA and funded by the Saudis to wage jihad against the Russian occupation of Afghanistan. Al-Qaida, literally "the database", was originally the computer file of the thousands of mujahideen who were recruited and trained with help from the CIA to defeat the Russians.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/terrorism/story/0,12780,1523838,00.html|title=The struggle against terrorism cannot be won by military means|last=Cook R|date=2005|work=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=8 Jul 2005|publisher=Guardian Unlimited|location=London}}</ref></blockquote>According to journalist [[Ahmed Rashid]], in 1986 bin Laden "helped build the Khost tunnel complex, which the CIA was funding as a major arms storage depot, training facility and medical centre for the Mujaheddin."<ref name=":2" /> Although bin Laden would elsewhere claim that "the [Americans] had no mentionable role"<ref>''Messages to the World'', 2006, p.50. (March 1997 interview with Peter Arnett</ref> and "are lying when they say that they cooperated with us" during the Soviet–Afghan War,<ref name="Hegghammer 2020 184">{{cite book |last=Hegghammer |first=Thomas |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7FfPDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA184 |title=The Caravan: Abdallah Azzam and the Rise of Global Jihad |date=2020 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-76595-4 |location=Cambridge |page=184}}</ref> in a 1995 interview bin Laden himself would state that:<blockquote>To counter these atheist Russians, the Saudis chose me as their representative in Afghanistan, [...] I settled in Pakistan in the Afghan border region. There I received volunteers who came from the Saudi Kingdom and from all over the Arab and Muslim countries. I set up my first camp where these volunteers were trained by Pakistani and American officers. The weapons were supplied by the Americans, the money by the Saudis.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book |last=Rashid |first=Ahmed |title=Taliban: Militant Islam, Oil and Fundamentalism in Central Asia |publisher=[[Yale University Press]] |year=2010 |isbn=9780300163681 |edition=2nd |pages=132; 256}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=August 27, 1998 |title=Bin Laden Quoted As Saying U.S. Trained His Men |quote="I created my first [military] camps, where these volunteers underwent training led by Pakistani and American officers. The arms were supplied by the Americans and the money by the Saudis," Bin Laden said in the interview, conducted in [[Khartoum]] during an [sic] conference of Arab and Moslem countries in April 1995. |agency=[[Reuters]] |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OI5TAAAAIBAJ&dq=I+created+my+first+%5Bmilitary%5D+camps%2C+where+these+volunteers+underwent+training+led+by+Pakistani+and+American+officers&pg=PA5&article_id=3701,6603848}}</ref></blockquote>In ''[[The New Jackals]]'', British journalist [[Simon Reeve (British TV presenter)|Simon Reeve]], quoting a "senior Pakistani intelligence source and a former CIA official," writes that "[US agents] armed [bin Laden's] men by letting him pay rock-bottom prices for basic weapons," and that "American emissaries are understood to have traveled to Pakistan for meetings with mujaheddin leaders... [A former CIA official] even suggests the US emissaries met directly with bin Laden, and that it was bin Laden, acting on advice from his friends in Saudi intelligence, who first suggested the mujaheddin should be given Stingers."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Reeve |first=Simon |title=The New Jackals: Ramzi Yousef, Osama bin Laden and the future of terrorism |publisher=[[Northeastern University Press]] |year=1998 |isbn=1-55553-407-4 |pages=167–168; 176–177}}</ref> Before the formation of al-Qaeda in 1988, bin Laden (among others) ran a precursor organization known as [[Maktab al-Khidamat]] (MAK), investigative reporter Joseph Trento will write, citing a "former CIA officer who actually filed these reports," that "CIA money was actually funneled to MAK, since it was recruiting young Muslim men to come join the jihad in Afghanistan."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Trento |first=Joseph |title=Prelude to Terror: The Rogue CIA and the Legacy of America's Private Intelligence Network |publisher=[[Carroll & Graf Publishers]] |year=2005 |isbn=0-7867-1464-6 |pages=341}}</ref> Likewise, [[NBC News|NBC]]'s [[Michael Moran (journalist)|Michael Moran]] states that "the MAK was nurtured by Pakistan’s state security services, the Inter-Services Intelligence agency, or ISI, the CIA’s primary conduit for conducting the covert war against Moscow’s occupation."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Moran |first=Michael |date=2003-12-10 |title=Bin Laden comes home to roost |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna3340101 |access-date= |website=NBC News |language=en}}</ref> [[Michael Springmann]], a consular officer at the US Consulate in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia from 1987 to 1989, would state that he issued more than a hundred visas to unqualified applicants after pressure from his superiors in the [[United States Department of State|State Department]], stating to have learned that the visas went to militants recruited by the CIA and bin Laden for training.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Freedberg |first=Sydney |date=November 25, 2001 |title=Loopholes leave U.S. borders vulnerable |url=https://www.tampabay.com/archive/2001/11/25/loopholes-leave-u-s-borders-vulnerable/ |access-date= |website=[[St. Petersburg Times]] |language=}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=November 8, 2001  |title=Newsnight - Has someone been sitting on the FBI? |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/events/newsnight/1645527.stm |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20021011104011/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/events/newsnight/1645527.stm |archivedate=October 11, 2002 |publisher=[[BBC News]]}}</ref> In conversation with former British [[Secretary of State for Defence|Defence Secretary]] [[Michael Portillo]], two-time prime minister of Pakistan [[Benazir Bhutto]] said Osama bin Laden was initially pro-American.<ref>{{Cite episode|series=Dinner with Portillo|date=20 Mar 2003|last=Bhutto B|station=[[BBC Four]]}}</ref> Prince [[Bandar bin Sultan]] of [[Saudi Arabia]], has also stated that bin Laden once expressed appreciation for the United States' help in Afghanistan. On CNN's [[Larry King]] program he said: <blockquote> Bandar bin Sultan: This is ironic. In the mid-'80s, if you remember, we and the United - Saudi Arabia and the United States were supporting the Mujahideen to liberate Afghanistan from the Soviets. He [Osama bin Laden] came to thank me for my efforts to bring the Americans, our friends, to help us against the atheists, he said the communists. Isn't it ironic? Larry King: How ironic. In other words, he came to thank you for helping bring America to help him. Bandar bin Sultan: Right.<ref>{{Cite episode |series=[[Larry King Live]] |date=1 Oct 2001 |title=America's New War: Responding to Terrorism |last=King L |station=[[CNN]] |transcript-url=http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0110/01/lkl.00.html |transcript=CNN Transcripts}}</ref> </blockquote> ==Opposing view== U.S. government officials and a number of other parties maintain that the U.S. supported only the indigenous Afghan mujahideen. They deny that the CIA or other American officials had contact with Bin Laden, let alone armed, trained, coached, or indoctrinated him. American analysts and reporters have called the idea of a CIA-backed Al Qaeda "nonsense",<ref name=":0">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b9eFGcsWnwEC&pg=PA291|title=Globalized Islam: The Search for a New Ummah|last=Roy|first=Olivier|publisher=Columbia University Press|year=2004|isbn=9780231134996|location=New York|pages=291–92|name-list-style=vanc}}</ref> "sheer fantasy",<ref name="Sageman, p.57-58">{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/understandingter00sage|url-access=registration|title=Understanding Terror Networks|last=Sageman|first=Marc|publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press|year=2004|isbn=9780812238082|location=Philadelphia|pages=[https://archive.org/details/understandingter00sage/page/57 57]–8|name-list-style=vanc}}</ref> and a "common myth".<ref>{{cite book |last=Bergen |first=Peter L. |author-link=Peter Bergen |date=2021 |title=The Rise and Fall of Osama bin Laden |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mWI7EAAAQBAJ&pg=PA42 |location=New York |publisher=Simon & Schuster |page=42 |isbn=978-1-9821-7052-3}}</ref> According to [[Peter Bergen]], "there is simply no evidence for the common myth that bin Laden and his Afghan Arabs were supported by the CIA financially. Nor is there any evidence that CIA officials at any level met with bin Laden or anyone in his circle."<ref>{{cite book |last=Bergen |first=Peter L. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mWI7EAAAQBAJ&pg=PA42 |title=The Rise and Fall of Osama bin Laden |date=2021 |publisher=Simon & Schuster |isbn=978-1-9821-7052-3 |location=New York |pages=42–43 |author-link=Peter Bergen}}</ref> Bergen insists that U.S. funding went to the ''Afghan'' mujahideen, not the [[Afghan Arabs|Arab volunteers]] who arrived to assist them.<ref name="Bergen">{{cite book |last=Bergen |first=Peter |title=The Osama bin Laden I Know: An Oral History of al Qaeda's Leader |publisher=Simon and Schuster |year=2006 |isbn=9780743295925 |pages=60–61}}</ref> [[Mustafa Setmariam Nasar]], a former Afghan Arab fighter and suspected member of al-Qaeda states that, "[i]t is a big lie that the Afghan Arabs were formed with the backing of the CIA, whose minions were Bin Laden and Azzam ... the accusation that bin Laden was an employee of the CIA [is false]." Former Al-Qaeda leader [[Ayman al-Zawahiri]] wrote that "the United States did not give one penny to the [Arab] mujahideen. Is it possible that Osama bin Laden who, in his lectures in the year 1987, called for the boycott of U.S. goods ... is [a] U.S. agent in Afghanistan?" [[Abdullah Anas]] wrote, "I never learned, until my departure from Afghanistan, about the rumors concerning the CIA's involvement in the Afghan jihad through secret circles. I don't know, but what is known and clear is that the main supply depots for the jihad were in the bases of the Pakistani army in Peshawar."<ref name="Hegghammer 2020 184"/> [[Marc Sageman]], a former CIA [[Operations officer (CIA)|Operations Officer]] who was based in Islamabad from 1987 to 1989, and worked closely with Afghanistan's Mujahideen, states that no American money went to the Afghan Arabs, that "[n]o U.S. official ever came in contact with the foreign volunteers," and that they "never crossed U.S. radar screens."<ref name="Sageman, p.57-58" /> According to [[Peter Beinart]], quoting Vincent Cannistraro "who led the Reagan administration's Afghan Working Group from 1985 to 1987," the CIA "tried to avoid direct involvement in the [Soviet-Afghan] war," and that when Cannistraro coordinated Afghan policy, he never once heard bin Laden's name.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Beinart P |date=2001 |title=Back To Front |url=https://newrepublic.com/article/63866/back-front |magazine=[[The New Republic]]}}</ref> Both "Bill Peikney—CIA station chief in Islamabad from 1984 to 1986—and Milt Bearden—CIA station chief from 1986 to 1989 [...] flatly denied that any CIA funds ever went to bin Laden," with Peikney stating that "I don’t even recall UBL [bin Laden] coming across my screen when I was there."<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.foxnews.com/story/dispelling-the-cia-bin-laden-myth|title=Dispelling the CIA-Bin Laden Myth|last=Miniter R|date=2003|work=[[Fox News]]|access-date=6 Oct 2009|department=International|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090727085034/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,98115,00.html|archive-date=27 July 2009|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> According to Bearden, the CIA did not recruit Arabs because there were hundreds of thousands of Afghans all too willing to fight.<ref name="Holy War Inc. p.66">{{cite book|title=Holy War Inc.|last=Bergen|first=Peter|publisher=The Free Press|year=2001|isbn=9780743234672|location=New York|pages=65–7|chapter=Blowback: The CIA and the Afghan War|name-list-style=vanc|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sRhZDrJb0zgC&pg=PA65}}</ref> Academic historian Paul Thomas Chamberlin wrote in 2018 that "[t]o date, no researcher has produced documentation of direct links between Washington and bin Laden or, for that matter, [[Abu Musab al-Zarqawi|Zarqawi]]. The weight of evidence suggests that the CIA and the future leaders of Al-Qaeda and [[Islamic State|ISIS]] were not in communication with one another during the Soviet occupation in Afghanistan," but that "[n]evertheless, U.S. and Soviet operations in Afghanistan laid the groundwork for the rise of a global jihadist movement in the waning years of the Cold War."<ref name="Chamberlin 2018">{{cite book |last=Chamberlin |first=Paul Thomas |title=The Cold War's Killing Fields: Rethinking the Long Peace |publisher=[[HarperCollins]] |year=2018 |isbn=9780062367228 |page=554}}</ref> ==Agreements== In his 2004 book ''[[Ghost Wars]]'', [[Steve Coll]] writes that "Bin Laden moved within [[General Intelligence Presidency|Saudi intelligence]]'s compartmented operations, outside of CIA eyesight. CIA archives contain no record of any direct contact between a CIA officer and bin Laden during the 1980s," commenting that "[i]f the CIA did have contact with bin Laden during the 1980s and subsequently covered it up, it has so far done an excellent job."<ref name="Coll p. 87">{{cite book |last=Coll |first=Steve |title=[[Ghost Wars]]: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and Bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001 |publisher=[[Penguin Group]] |year=2004 |isbn=9781594200076 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/ghostwarssecreth00coll/page/87 87] |author-link=Steve Coll |name-list-style=vanc}}</ref> Coll nonetheless documents that bin Laden at least informally cooperated with the ISI during the 1980s, and "tapping into ISI’s guerrilla training camps on behalf of newly arrived Arab jihadists" to the notice of the CIA. Bin Laden also had intimate connections to CIA-backed mujahideen commander [[Jalaluddin Haqqani]], and [[Milton Bearden]], the CIA's [[Islamabad]] station chief from mid-1986 until mid-1989, took an admiring view of bin Laden at the time.<ref name=":3">{{cite book |last=Coll |first=Steve |title=[[Ghost Wars|Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and Bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001]] |publisher=[[Penguin Group]] |year=2004 |isbn=9781594200076 |pages=87–88, 147, 152–158, 167, 208 |author-link=Steve Coll}}</ref> Afghan assets recounted the fanaticism and intolerance of many of the so-called "Afghan Arabs" to the CIA, yet the CIA discounted these reports, instead contemplating direct support to the Arab volunteers under the guise of a [[Spanish Civil War]]-inspired "[[International Brigades|international brigade]]"—a concept that, according to [[Robert Gates]] then-[[CIA Deputy Director|Deputy Director of Central Intelligence]], never got off paper.<ref name=":3" /><ref>{{Cite book |last=Gates |first=Robert |title=From the Shadows: The Ultimate Insider's Story of Five Presidents and how They Won the Cold War |publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]] |year=1997 |isbn=9780684834979 |pages=349 |quote=It was during this period that we began to learn of a significant increase in the number of Arab nationals from other countries who had traveled to Afghanistan to fight in the Holy War against the Soviets. They came from Syria, Iraq, Algeria, and elsewhere, and most fought with the Islamic fundamentalist Muj groups, particularly that headed by [[Abdul Rasul Sayyaf]]. We examined ways to increase their participation, perhaps in the form of some sort of "international brigade," but nothing came of it.}}</ref> On the other hand, according to Rashid, then-CIA chief [[William J. Casey]] "committed CIA support to a long-standing ISI initiative to recruit radical Muslims from around the world to come to Pakistan and fight with the Afghan Mujaheddin."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rashid |first=Ahmed |title=Taliban: Militant Islam, Oil and Fundamentalism in Central Asia |publisher=[[Yale University Press]] |year=2010 |isbn=9780300163681 |edition=2nd |pages=129}}</ref> Norwegian academic historian [[Odd Arne Westad]] writes that the CIA funded "Islamic charitable organizations that provided assistance to the mujahedin," and that "[a]t least two of these organizations also recruited Muslim volunteers—mostly from North Africa—to fight in Afghanistan," with the CIA also helping run training camps in Egypt and "probably one in one of the Gulf states" for both native Afghan and Afghan Arab recruits.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Westad |first=Odd Arne |editor-last=Njølstad |editor-first=Olav |title=The Last Decade of the Cold War: From Conflict Escalation to Conflict Transformation |chapter=Reagan’s Anti-Revolutionary Offensive in the Third World |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=2004 |isbn=9780714685397 |pages=212–213, 217–218}}</ref> [[Martin Ewans|Sir Martin Ewans]] stated that the Afghan Arabs "benefited indirectly from the CIA's funding, through the ISI and resistance organizations,"<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=c9V-AgAAQBAJ&pg=PA128|title=Conflict in Afghanistan: Studies in Asymetric Warfare|last=Ewans|first=Martin|publisher=Routledge|year=2004|isbn=9781134294817|location=London|pages=128}}</ref> and that "it has been reckoned that as many as 35,000 'Arab-Afghans' may have received military training in Pakistan at an estimated cost of $800 million in the years up to and including 1988."<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BREUv91DebIC&pg=PP1|title=Afghanistan - A New History|last=Ewans|first=Martin|publisher=Routledge|year=2013|isbn=9781136803390|location=London|pages=205|name-list-style=vanc}}</ref> Some of the CIA's greatest Afghan beneficiaries were Arabist commanders such as Haqqani and [[Gulbuddin Hekmatyar]] who were key allies of Bin Laden over many years.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Talibanistan: Negotiating the Borders Between Terror, Politics, and Religion|vauthors=Gopal A, Mahsud MK, Fishman B|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2013|isbn=9780199893096|veditors=Bergen P, Tiedemann K|location=USA|pages=132–142|chapter=The Taliban in North Waziristan|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dvtQI1aANTIC&pg=PA142}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://nsarchive2.gwu.edu/NSAEBB/NSAEBB389/|title=The Haqqani History: Bin Ladin's Advocate Inside the Taliban|date=11 Sep 2012|editor-last=Elias-Sanborn B|website=[[National Security Archive]]|access-date=6 Mar 2019}}</ref> Haqqani—one of Bin Laden's closest associates in the 1980s—received direct cash payments from CIA agents, without the mediation of the ISI. This independent source of funding gave Haqqani disproportionate influence over the mujahideen, and helped Bin Laden develop his base.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b95MAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA289|title=Fountainhead of Jihad: The Haqqani Nexus, 1973-2012|last1=Brown|first1=Vahid|last2=Rassler|first2=Don|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2013|isbn=9780199327980|location=USA|pages=68–69|name-list-style=vanc}}</ref> [[Sheik Omar Abdel Rahman]], an associate of Bin Laden's, was given visas to enter the US on four occasions by the CIA.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OLvTNk75hUoC|title=Jihad: The Trail of Political Islam|last=Kepel|first=Gilles|publisher=Harvard University Press|year=2002|isbn=9781845112578|pages=300–304}}</ref> Rahman was recruiting Arabs to fight in the Soviet-Afghan war, and Egyptian officials testified that the CIA actively assisted him. Rahman was a co-plotter of the [[1993 World Trade Center bombing]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/07/22/nyregion/cia-officers-played-role-in-sheik-visas.html|title=C.I.A. Officers Played Role In Sheik Visas|last=Jehl D|date=1993|work=[[The New York Times]]|access-date=6 Mar 2019}}</ref><ref name="Holy War Inc. p.66" /> One allegation not denied by the US government is that the U.S. Army enlisted and trained a former [[Egypt]]ian soldier named [[Ali Mohamed (double agent)|Ali Mohamed]], and that it knew Ali occasionally took trips to Afghanistan, where he claimed to fight Russians.<ref name="marshall">{{Cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/terror-blowback-burns-cia-1182087.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101004052543/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/terror-blowback-burns-cia-1182087.html |archive-date=2010-10-04 |url-access=limited |url-status=live|title=Terror 'blowback' burns CIA|last=Marshall A|date=1998|work=[[The Independent]]|access-date=16 Sep 2009}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{cite book |last=Wright |first=Lawrence |url=https://archive.org/details/loomingtoweralqa00wrig |title=Looming Tower: Al Qaeda and the Road to 9/11 |publisher=Knopf |year=2006 |isbn=9780307266088 |location=New York |url-access=registration |name-list-style=vanc}}</ref>{{Page needed|date=September 2010}} According to journalist [[Lawrence Wright]], who interviewed U.S. officials about him, Ali told his Army superiors that he was fighting in Afghanistan, but did not tell them he was training other Afghan Arabs or writing a manual from what he had learned from the [[United States Army Special Forces|US Army Special Forces]]. Wright also reports that the CIA failed to inform other US agencies that it had learned Ali, who was a member of [[Egyptian Islamic Jihad]], was an anti-American spy.<ref name=":1" />{{Page needed|date=September 2010}} ==See also== *[[Bank of Credit and Commerce International]] *[[CIA activities in Afghanistan]] *[[Operation Cyclone]] *[[United States and state-sponsored terrorism]] *''[[Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of the Largest Covert Operation in History]]'' ==References== {{Reflist|30em}} {{Osama bin Laden}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Cia-Osama Bin Laden Controversy}} [[Category:Allegations]] [[Category:CIA activities in Asia]] [[Category:Osama bin Laden]] [[Category:Soviet–Afghan War]] [[Category:CIA and Islamism]] </textarea><div class="templatesUsed"><div class="mw-templatesUsedExplanation"><p><span id="templatesused">Pages transcluded onto the current version of this page<span class="posteditwindowhelplinks"> (<a href="/wiki/Help:Transclusion" title="Help:Transclusion">help</a>)</span>:</span> </p></div><ul> <li><a href="/wiki/Template:Category_handler" title="Template:Category handler">Template:Category handler</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Category_handler&action=edit" title="Template:Category handler">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Circa" title="Template:Circa">Template:Circa</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Circa&action=edit" title="Template:Circa">view source</a>) (template editor protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Cite_book" title="Template:Cite book">Template:Cite book</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Cite_book&action=edit" title="Template:Cite book">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Cite_episode" title="Template:Cite episode">Template:Cite episode</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Cite_episode&action=edit" title="Template:Cite episode">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Cite_magazine" title="Template:Cite magazine">Template:Cite magazine</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Cite_magazine&action=edit" title="Template:Cite magazine">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Cite_news" title="Template:Cite news">Template:Cite news</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Cite_news&action=edit" title="Template:Cite news">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Cite_web" title="Template:Cite web">Template:Cite web</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Cite_web&action=edit" title="Template:Cite web">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Color" title="Template:Color">Template:Color</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Color&action=edit" title="Template:Color">view source</a>) (template editor protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Color/styles.css" title="Template:Color/styles.css">Template:Color/styles.css</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Color/styles.css&action=edit" title="Template:Color/styles.css">view source</a>) (template editor protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Colored_link" title="Template:Colored link">Template:Colored link</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Colored_link&action=edit" title="Template:Colored link">view source</a>) (template editor protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Delink" title="Template:Delink">Template:Delink</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Delink&action=edit" title="Template:Delink">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:First_word" title="Template:First word">Template:First word</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:First_word&action=edit" title="Template:First word">view source</a>) (template editor protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Fix" title="Template:Fix">Template:Fix</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Fix&action=edit" title="Template:Fix">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Fix/category" title="Template:Fix/category">Template:Fix/category</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Fix/category&action=edit" title="Template:Fix/category">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Hidden_begin" title="Template:Hidden begin">Template:Hidden begin</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Hidden_begin&action=edit" title="Template:Hidden begin">view source</a>) (template editor protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Hidden_begin/styles.css" title="Template:Hidden begin/styles.css">Template:Hidden begin/styles.css</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Hidden_begin/styles.css&action=edit" title="Template:Hidden begin/styles.css">view source</a>) (template editor protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Hidden_end" title="Template:Hidden end">Template:Hidden end</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Hidden_end&action=edit" title="Template:Hidden end">view source</a>) (template editor protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Hlist/styles.css" title="Template:Hlist/styles.css">Template:Hlist/styles.css</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Hlist/styles.css&action=edit" title="Template:Hlist/styles.css">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Ifsubst" title="Template:Ifsubst">Template:Ifsubst</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Ifsubst&action=edit" title="Template:Ifsubst">view source</a>) (template editor protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Main_other" title="Template:Main other">Template:Main other</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Main_other&action=edit" title="Template:Main other">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Osama_bin_Laden" title="Template:Osama bin Laden">Template:Osama bin Laden</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Osama_bin_Laden&action=edit" title="Template:Osama bin Laden">edit</a>) </li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Osama_bin_Laden_series" title="Template:Osama bin Laden series">Template:Osama bin Laden series</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Osama_bin_Laden_series&action=edit" title="Template:Osama bin Laden series">edit</a>) </li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:PAGENAMEBASE" title="Template:PAGENAMEBASE">Template:PAGENAMEBASE</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:PAGENAMEBASE&action=edit" title="Template:PAGENAMEBASE">view source</a>) (template editor protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Page_needed" title="Template:Page needed">Template:Page needed</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Page_needed&action=edit" title="Template:Page needed">view source</a>) (template editor protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Pagetype" title="Template:Pagetype">Template:Pagetype</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Pagetype&action=edit" title="Template:Pagetype">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Reflist" title="Template:Reflist">Template:Reflist</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Reflist&action=edit" title="Template:Reflist">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Reflist/styles.css" title="Template:Reflist/styles.css">Template:Reflist/styles.css</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Reflist/styles.css&action=edit" title="Template:Reflist/styles.css">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:SDcat" title="Template:SDcat">Template:SDcat</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:SDcat&action=edit" title="Template:SDcat">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Short_description" title="Template:Short description">Template:Short description</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Short_description&action=edit" title="Template:Short description">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Short_description/lowercasecheck" title="Template:Short description/lowercasecheck">Template:Short description/lowercasecheck</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Short_description/lowercasecheck&action=edit" title="Template:Short description/lowercasecheck">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Sidebar_person" title="Template:Sidebar person">Template:Sidebar person</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Sidebar_person&action=edit" title="Template:Sidebar person">view source</a>) (template editor protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Sidebar_person/styles.css" title="Template:Sidebar person/styles.css">Template:Sidebar person/styles.css</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Sidebar_person/styles.css&action=edit" title="Template:Sidebar person/styles.css">view source</a>) (template editor protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Trim" title="Template:Trim">Template:Trim</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Trim&action=edit" title="Template:Trim">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Yesno" title="Template:Yesno">Template:Yesno</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Template:Yesno&action=edit" title="Template:Yesno">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Arguments" title="Module:Arguments">Module:Arguments</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Arguments&action=edit" title="Module:Arguments">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Category_handler" title="Module:Category handler">Module:Category handler</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Category_handler&action=edit" title="Module:Category handler">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Category_handler/blacklist" title="Module:Category handler/blacklist">Module:Category handler/blacklist</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Category_handler/blacklist&action=edit" title="Module:Category handler/blacklist">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Category_handler/config" title="Module:Category handler/config">Module:Category handler/config</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Category_handler/config&action=edit" title="Module:Category handler/config">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Category_handler/data" title="Module:Category handler/data">Module:Category handler/data</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Category_handler/data&action=edit" title="Module:Category handler/data">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Category_handler/shared" title="Module:Category handler/shared">Module:Category handler/shared</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Category_handler/shared&action=edit" title="Module:Category handler/shared">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Check_for_unknown_parameters" title="Module:Check for unknown parameters">Module:Check for unknown parameters</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Check_for_unknown_parameters&action=edit" title="Module:Check for unknown parameters">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Citation/CS1" title="Module:Citation/CS1">Module:Citation/CS1</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Citation/CS1&action=edit" title="Module:Citation/CS1">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Citation/CS1/COinS" title="Module:Citation/CS1/COinS">Module:Citation/CS1/COinS</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Citation/CS1/COinS&action=edit" title="Module:Citation/CS1/COinS">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration" title="Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration">Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration&action=edit" title="Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Citation/CS1/Date_validation" title="Module:Citation/CS1/Date validation">Module:Citation/CS1/Date validation</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Citation/CS1/Date_validation&action=edit" title="Module:Citation/CS1/Date validation">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Citation/CS1/Identifiers" title="Module:Citation/CS1/Identifiers">Module:Citation/CS1/Identifiers</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Citation/CS1/Identifiers&action=edit" title="Module:Citation/CS1/Identifiers">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Citation/CS1/Utilities" title="Module:Citation/CS1/Utilities">Module:Citation/CS1/Utilities</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Citation/CS1/Utilities&action=edit" title="Module:Citation/CS1/Utilities">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Citation/CS1/Whitelist" title="Module:Citation/CS1/Whitelist">Module:Citation/CS1/Whitelist</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Citation/CS1/Whitelist&action=edit" title="Module:Citation/CS1/Whitelist">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css" title="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css">Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css&action=edit" title="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Delink" title="Module:Delink">Module:Delink</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Delink&action=edit" title="Module:Delink">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Disambiguation/templates" title="Module:Disambiguation/templates">Module:Disambiguation/templates</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Disambiguation/templates&action=edit" title="Module:Disambiguation/templates">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Namespace_detect/config" title="Module:Namespace detect/config">Module:Namespace detect/config</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Namespace_detect/config&action=edit" title="Module:Namespace detect/config">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Namespace_detect/data" title="Module:Namespace detect/data">Module:Namespace detect/data</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Namespace_detect/data&action=edit" title="Module:Namespace detect/data">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Navbar" title="Module:Navbar">Module:Navbar</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Navbar&action=edit" title="Module:Navbar">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Navbar/configuration" title="Module:Navbar/configuration">Module:Navbar/configuration</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Navbar/configuration&action=edit" title="Module:Navbar/configuration">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Navbar/styles.css" title="Module:Navbar/styles.css">Module:Navbar/styles.css</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Navbar/styles.css&action=edit" title="Module:Navbar/styles.css">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Navbox" title="Module:Navbox">Module:Navbox</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Navbox&action=edit" title="Module:Navbox">view source</a>) (template editor protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Navbox/configuration" title="Module:Navbox/configuration">Module:Navbox/configuration</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Navbox/configuration&action=edit" title="Module:Navbox/configuration">view source</a>) (template editor protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Navbox/styles.css" title="Module:Navbox/styles.css">Module:Navbox/styles.css</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Navbox/styles.css&action=edit" title="Module:Navbox/styles.css">view source</a>) (template editor protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Pagetype" title="Module:Pagetype">Module:Pagetype</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Pagetype&action=edit" title="Module:Pagetype">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Pagetype/config" title="Module:Pagetype/config">Module:Pagetype/config</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Pagetype/config&action=edit" title="Module:Pagetype/config">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Pagetype/disambiguation" class="mw-redirect" title="Module:Pagetype/disambiguation">Module:Pagetype/disambiguation</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Pagetype/disambiguation&action=edit" class="mw-redirect" title="Module:Pagetype/disambiguation">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Pagetype/rfd" title="Module:Pagetype/rfd">Module:Pagetype/rfd</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Pagetype/rfd&action=edit" title="Module:Pagetype/rfd">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Pagetype/setindex" title="Module:Pagetype/setindex">Module:Pagetype/setindex</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Pagetype/setindex&action=edit" title="Module:Pagetype/setindex">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Pagetype/softredirect" title="Module:Pagetype/softredirect">Module:Pagetype/softredirect</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Pagetype/softredirect&action=edit" title="Module:Pagetype/softredirect">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:SDcat" title="Module:SDcat">Module:SDcat</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:SDcat&action=edit" title="Module:SDcat">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Sidebar" title="Module:Sidebar">Module:Sidebar</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Sidebar&action=edit" title="Module:Sidebar">view source</a>) (template editor protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Sidebar/configuration" title="Module:Sidebar/configuration">Module:Sidebar/configuration</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Sidebar/configuration&action=edit" title="Module:Sidebar/configuration">view source</a>) (template editor protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Sidebar/styles.css" title="Module:Sidebar/styles.css">Module:Sidebar/styles.css</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Sidebar/styles.css&action=edit" title="Module:Sidebar/styles.css">view source</a>) (template editor protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:String" title="Module:String">Module:String</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:String&action=edit" title="Module:String">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:TableTools" title="Module:TableTools">Module:TableTools</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:TableTools&action=edit" title="Module:TableTools">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Unsubst" title="Module:Unsubst">Module:Unsubst</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Unsubst&action=edit" title="Module:Unsubst">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Wikitext_Parsing" title="Module:Wikitext Parsing">Module:Wikitext Parsing</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Wikitext_Parsing&action=edit" title="Module:Wikitext Parsing">view source</a>) (protected)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Module:Yesno" title="Module:Yesno">Module:Yesno</a> (<a href="/w/index.php?title=Module:Yesno&action=edit" title="Module:Yesno">view source</a>) (protected)</li></ul></div><p id="mw-returnto">Return to <a href="/wiki/Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden" title="Allegations of CIA assistance to Osama bin Laden">Allegations of CIA assistance to Osama bin Laden</a>.</p> <noscript><img src="https://login.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:CentralAutoLogin/start?type=1x1" alt="" width="1" height="1" style="border: none; position: absolute;"></noscript> <div class="printfooter" data-nosnippet="">Retrieved from "<a dir="ltr" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden</a>"</div></div> <div id="catlinks" class="catlinks catlinks-allhidden" data-mw="interface"></div> </div> </main> </div> <div class="mw-footer-container"> <footer id="footer" class="mw-footer" > <ul id="footer-info"> </ul> <ul id="footer-places"> <li id="footer-places-privacy"><a href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Privacy_policy">Privacy policy</a></li> <li id="footer-places-about"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:About">About Wikipedia</a></li> <li id="footer-places-disclaimers"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:General_disclaimer">Disclaimers</a></li> <li id="footer-places-contact"><a href="//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Contact_us">Contact Wikipedia</a></li> <li id="footer-places-wm-codeofconduct"><a href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Universal_Code_of_Conduct">Code of Conduct</a></li> <li id="footer-places-developers"><a href="https://developer.wikimedia.org">Developers</a></li> <li id="footer-places-statslink"><a href="https://stats.wikimedia.org/#/en.wikipedia.org">Statistics</a></li> <li id="footer-places-cookiestatement"><a href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Cookie_statement">Cookie statement</a></li> <li id="footer-places-mobileview"><a href="//en.m.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden&action=edit&mobileaction=toggle_view_mobile" class="noprint stopMobileRedirectToggle">Mobile view</a></li> </ul> <ul id="footer-icons" class="noprint"> <li id="footer-copyrightico"><a href="https://wikimediafoundation.org/" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--size-large cdx-button--fake-button--enabled"><img src="/static/images/footer/wikimedia-button.svg" width="84" height="29" alt="Wikimedia Foundation" loading="lazy"></a></li> <li id="footer-poweredbyico"><a href="https://www.mediawiki.org/" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--size-large cdx-button--fake-button--enabled"><img src="/w/resources/assets/poweredby_mediawiki.svg" alt="Powered by MediaWiki" width="88" height="31" loading="lazy"></a></li> </ul> </footer> </div> </div> </div> <div class="vector-settings" id="p-dock-bottom"> <ul></ul> </div><script>(RLQ=window.RLQ||[]).push(function(){mw.config.set({"wgHostname":"mw-web.codfw.main-57488d5c7d-tlb8r","wgBackendResponseTime":400,"wgPageParseReport":{"limitreport":{"cputime":"0.072","walltime":"0.092","ppvisitednodes":{"value":418,"limit":1000000},"postexpandincludesize":{"value":17740,"limit":2097152},"templateargumentsize":{"value":6556,"limit":2097152},"expansiondepth":{"value":9,"limit":100},"expensivefunctioncount":{"value":0,"limit":500},"unstrip-depth":{"value":0,"limit":20},"unstrip-size":{"value":469,"limit":5000000},"entityaccesscount":{"value":0,"limit":400},"timingprofile":["100.00% 64.739 1 -total"," 99.84% 64.632 2 Template:Blocked_text"," 45.69% 29.577 2 Template:Replace"," 36.25% 23.470 1 Template:Colocationwebhost"," 31.58% 20.447 1 Template:Hidden"," 12.96% 8.392 1 Template:Tlx"," 12.75% 8.255 1 Template:Hidden_begin"," 2.26% 1.465 1 Template:Hidden_end"," 1.93% 1.248 1 MediaWiki:Wikimedia-globalblocking-blockedtext-mistake"," 1.63% 1.055 1 MediaWiki:Wikimedia-globalblocking-blockedtext-mistake-email-steward"]},"scribunto":{"limitreport-timeusage":{"value":"0.015","limit":"10.000"},"limitreport-memusage":{"value":1043413,"limit":52428800}},"cachereport":{"origin":"mw-web.codfw.main-57488d5c7d-tlb8r","timestamp":"20241128040640","ttl":2592000,"transientcontent":false}}});});</script> </body> </html>