To understand Al-Qaeda, we must go back to the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. This war became a breeding ground for radical Islamism, attracting thousands of foreign fighters, including a wealthy Saudi named Osama bin Laden.

📌 Key Points Covered:

• The Soviet-Afghan War (1979-1989): How Afghanistan became a battleground between communism and Islamic insurgents.
• The Role of the United States & Pakistan: How the CIA, ISI (Pakistan’s intelligence agency), and Saudi Arabia funded and armed the Mujahideen under Operation Cyclone.
• Osama bin Laden’s Emergence: His journey from a privileged Saudi family to the mountains of Afghanistan, where he built training camps with U.S.-supplied weapons.
• The Birth of Al-Qaeda (1988): How bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri established an organization focused not just on fighting in Afghanistan but waging a global jihad.

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