On Tuesday, October 8, the Minister of the Interior declared an administrative ban on a son of Osama bin Laden, the founder of Al-Qaeda.
Omar bin Laden, 43, actually lived in France. He is the fourth son of Osama bin Laden. He is one of the 52 children of the mastermind of the September 11 terrorist attacks. Il claims to have nevertheless cut ties with his father in 1999, when he left Afghanistan. He has since had a Qatari passport.
It’s only in 2018 he moved to France legally. The Qatari national then sets down his suitcases in the village of Domfront in Poiraie, in the Orne department. In 2021, he obtains a residence permit valid until July 2026.
But for almost a year and a half, he is accused of having advocated terrorism. The facts date from May 2023. They follow a publication on the social network. According to the Orne prefecture, Omar bin Laden “received comments on his account that were an apology for terrorism and the glorification of Al-Qaeda.”
“This tweet is not mine”
On October 27, 2023, Omar bin Laden had his residence permit withdrawn. An obligation to leave French territory within 30 days is even promulgated. The Qatari national complies and returns to Qatar. Since then, he has never returned to France. The man is banned from returning to French soil for two years.
Omar bin Laden claims to have never made comments advocating terrorism. “This tweet isn’t mine, someone wrote it using my name. It’s not even my account”he assured at the microphone of RTL. “This tweet was not posted from France, but from very far away. I do not tolerate any violenceI am not interested in politics”, he insisted. “I am only interested in my business, in my profession as an artist”. Omar bin Laden also says he spoke with the person who wrote this tweet. This same person who according to him used the first and last name of Omar bin Laden.
“I’ll tell him the truth.”
On October 8, Bruno Retailleau therefore filed an administrative ban from the territory because Omar bin Laden had filed an appeal with the Caen court. This appeal was rejected. The Minister of the Interior spoke at the same time on the social network “Omar bin Laden to return to France for any reason whatsoever”.
With his lawyer, they decided to appeal this court decision. Omar bin Laden affirms and repeats that he has no connection with jihadism. “I him [Bruno Retailleau] I would ask that he let me explain the situation to him.. I will tell him not to listen to rumors from outside people. I will tell him the truth“, he wants to say to the Minister of the Interior.
“In 1999, I made the decision to leave Afghanistan, the country where I grew up, for a more peaceful life,” Omar bin Laden assured RTL. It is now up to the Council of State to examine this appeal to find out if, one day, Omar bin Laden will be able to return to France.
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