Osama bin Ladin

Osama bin Laden was born in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on March 10, 1957. His father was a wealthy businessman with close ties to the Saudi royal family. From 1068-1976 he attented the "elite" secular Al-Thager Model School. He studied economics and business administration at King Abdulaziz University. Some reports suggest that bin Laden earned a degree in civil engineering in 1979, or a degree in public administration in 1981. At university his main interest was religion, where he was involved in both interpreting the Quran an jihad and charitable work. He also wrote poetry. After leaving college in 1979 bin Ladin joined Abdullah Azzam to fight the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan and lived for a time in Peshawar.