Hamza bin Laden, son of Osama bin Laden, has called for the “overthrow” of the House of Saud describing them as “oppressive and tyrannical” rulers in an audio message that surfaced this week.
The 23-year old man, described as the favorite son of the founder of the Al-Qaeda network and believed to be groomed to replace his father as the leader of the terror group, said “change in the Land of the Two Holy Mosques will benefit the whole Islamic nation and bring it back to its glorious past.”
Saudi Arabia is ruled by the Saud family and Hamza describing them as “American agents” said there must be “an uprising” to end the reign of “the criminal ruling family, which has turned the Land of the Two Holy Mosques into a kingdom of [the West and Iran].”
In an audio message released last month, he vowed to revenge the killing of his father.
Hamza said “there must be an uprising” to pave the way for “Islamic law ruling the land.”
Saudi Arabia is governed by the Islamic Law but hardliners have often criticized it for laxity alleging that it succumbs to Western policies and is also influenced by modernization.
The message called on the tribes of the oil rich nation to “wage jihad” against the royal family and suggested that they could join Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) based in Yemen to “gain the necessary experience” if that is what they lack. He said the Saudi-led coalition, being “powerless” to confront the Houthi Movement, has instead focused on bombing AQAP, which is also fighting the Houthi militants.
The latest audio message is the fourth of its kind from Hamza but it is unclear if he has already taken up a leadership role in al-Qaeda currently under Ayman al-Zawahiri’s command.
With the increasing audios being released, it seems as if the world is about to have another Bin Laden famous for his terror activities in the West. Osama bin Laden was killed in 2011 during a raid on his compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, after he had been untraceable for decades.
