◆ SpookStack

ET/NOFORN/ORCON of Usama Bin Laden's (ubL) guesthouses, where the Mujahidin that came. to fight in Afghanistan were reguired to register, These. registration records later provided extensive contacts to Islamic fighters around the world. AL-QAEDA includes, in addition to the warriors present at Usama Bin Laden's camps, a loose network of terrorist cells throughout the world. The most outstanding features of AL-QAEDA are its international outreach and vast financial resources, derived mainly from Usama Bin Laden's personal wealth and financial dealings. (U) Usama Bin Laden was raised in Saudi Arabia in a wealthy, high profile, family of Yemeni origins. The beginning of his radicalization dates back to his university studies in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, where he was linked to members of the Muslim Brotherhood. Later, his involvement in the Afghan struggle against the Soviet occupation played a major role in shaping his ideology. During this experience, he found a sense of purpose and became deeply religious. Usama Bin Laden also made contacts with Islamic fighters from around the world and participated in a victorious struggle. against a secular superpower. The combination of Usama Bin.Laden's wealth, connection to, and command over experienced, motivated, and radical Islamic militants, and his fervent anti-U.s. orientation, make him a serious threat to U.s. national security. (U) AL-QAeDA operated approximately 12 training camps in Afghanistan, in which it has reportedly trained as many as 5,00o militants. These militants have allegedly created cells in 50 countries. + undetected among local populations. (U) AL-QAeDA members are familiar with modern communications and have been reported to use encrypted e-mail, uo snenunn bunugenn pue 'auonaennunnnnn annnnanes 'sauoyd nennnnen CD-RoMs. The group emphasizes the symbolic value of targets when making its selection, e.g., U.S. embassies, World Trade Center, military barracks, Uss Cole, etc. (U) The U.S. State Department currently links AL-QAEDA to. bombing (02/1993); the attacks in Riyadh (11/1995) and Dhahran (06/1996), Saudi Arabia; the assassination attempt on Egyptian President Mubarak in Ethiopia (06/1995); the near-simultaneous bombings of the U.s. embassies in Nairobi, Kenya, and Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania (0s/1998); and the bombing of the Uss Cole in Yemen. (11/2000). ET/NOFORN/ORCON 2