Bin Laden's Son Puts Al Qaeda Back on the Radar
The Bin Laden Name: Good for Al Qaeda Funding and Appeal.
According to the latest reports, Hamza bin Laden, son of Osama bin Laden, is calling for revenge against the United States. Should we be worried, or are his words an idle threat?
One American you’d think would be concerned: former Navy SEAL Robert O’Neill recently appeared on FOX & Friends with Steve Doocy in response to this latest news buzz.
Doocy: “He’s not calling for revenge against you, the guy who pulled the trigger. He’s going for revenge against the United States?”
O’Neill: “It’s more about keeping up with what al Qaeda originally wanted. They want to defend what they see as the oppression of the Palestinians in places like Afghanistan, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Africa. It’s reminding us that al Qaeda is still there. Ayman al-Zawahiri who actually runs al Qaeda sort of had them stand down in 2013 just to make it appear with the rise of ISIS they can appear to be more moderate, which is actually pretty dangerous. They’re in a lot more countries than ISIS and they’re as serious as they’ve ever been.”
Doocy: “Is the worry now that bin Laden’s kid may take over for Ayman al-Zawahiri?”
O’Neill: “They’re definitely grooming him for that. Some of the papers we found in the house the night my team killed Osama bin Laden mentioned Hamza a few times. They started grooming him really around 2011, 2012. He will eventually be the head if he stays alive.”
Doocy: “Of the thousands of documents and all that stuff you guys carted out…computers, hard drives, thumb drives…how much has been declassified?
O’Neill: “A lot of it has been declassified. You can find it in places where people are analyzing it. The Long War Journal does a great job with it. You can see how Osama bin Laden was actually running the show.”
Doocy: “One of the things about Osama bin Laden…he was a charismatic leader. The son? Does he have the same charisma?”
O’Neill: “The son has the brand. The bin Laden name. It’s really good for funding. He’s talking to a large audience, too. He released a statement recently talking to al-Nusra Front, which is 10,000 pure al Qaeda fighters in Syria. We never really talk about them. He’s got the capability and the charisma…talking to a younger audience, too.”
Doocy: “Is this just noise, or do we have to be worried?”
O’Neill: “It’s actually not bad, because it will put him back on the radar. A lot of our intelligence agencies have been underestimating al Qaeda. Because of ISIS and because we shifted to them, al Qaeda’s been able to grow. They know that under the radar is better. Just like 9/11. We didn’t expect it on a Tuesday morning.”