Osama bin Laden issued two major fatwas in the late 1990s:
- The first fatwa, issued in August 1996, was titled "Declaration of War against the Americans Occupying the Land of the Two Holy Places." This fatwa condemned the presence of American forces in Saudi Arabia, which is home to Islam's two holiest sites, Mecca and Medina. Bin Laden viewed the U.S. military presence as an occupation and a source of evil in the Middle East. He declared war against the Americans and their allies, accusing them of supporting Israel, oppressing Muslims, and enforcing sanctions on Iraq. This fatwa called for jihad (holy war) against the U.S. forces and their allies in Saudi Arabia and beyond.
- The second fatwa, issued on February 23, 1998, was titled "Declaration of the World Islamic Front for Jihad against the Jews and the Crusaders." This fatwa expanded the call to jihad globally, urging all Muslims to kill Americans, their allies, and Jews wherever possible. It framed this as an individual duty to free Islamic holy sites, such as Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem and the Haram Mosque in Mecca, from what bin Laden described as occupation by non-Muslim forces. This fatwa condemned U.S. military presence in the Arabian Peninsula, sanctions against Iraq, Israeli repression of Palestinians, and other perceived aggressions against Muslims.
These fatwas provided religious justification for bin Laden's jihadist campaign against the U.S. and its allies and were foundational to the ideology and actions of al-Qaeda in the years leading up to and following the 1998 U.S. embassy bombings in Africa and other attacks.
