Born into a wealthy Yemeni family in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Bin Laden became politically active following the invasion of Afghanistan by the Soviet Union in 1979. He mobilised support from Muslims from a range of countries to form Maktab al-Khidimat (MAK) and declared a jihad to expel the Soviets. Bin Laden remained active in pro-Muslim political causes in a number of countries and has been strongly implicated in a range of terrorist attacks. These include the attack on the World Trade Centre (1993), attacks on Americans in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Yemen and Nairobi and the 11 September 2001 attack on the USA.
