Hamza Bin Laden, one of the sons of the terrorist Bin Laden, seems getting groomed for the key role in al Qaeda.
An audio recording surfaced witnessed Hamza’s voice, calling for the unity among jihadi militants in Syria, who are currently fighting under competing banners ranging from ISIS to al Qaeda.
According to a translation by the SITE Intelligence Group, he also calls for jihad against Israel and its American backers to "liberate" Palestine.
In less than 12 months, the latest recording is the second one and could represent al Qaeda’s effort to capitalize on Bin Laden’s name impact.
Responding to the issue, national security analyst Peter Bergen said, “Obviously, he has the family name. He's now playing a propaganda role, and he's a lot younger than some of the other leaders of al Qaeda, in their 50s or their 60s.”
Believed to be in his mid 20s, Hamza Bin Laden could represent al Qaeda’s next generation.
“From a very early age, his father was kind of grooming him. Hamza has been very much indoctrinated with the whole jihadi kind of message. He's a true believer. I think that makes him a concern,” Bergen said.
When American special forces raided Bin Laden’s compound in 2011, Hamza was not at the spot, unlike one of his brothers, who was killed that day.
According to the papers found at the compound, Hamza had been sent off for the terrorist training.
“Just a month before the raid on Osama bin Laden's compound, we know Hamza was somewhere else in Pakistan being trained by al Qaeda leadership. He was receiving high-end explosives training,” Thomas Joscelyn, a terrorism researcher said.
But there is no clarity on the operational role of Hamza, in planning the terrorist attacks. Sources say that, his role is primarily focused on Qaeda's propaganda operation.
According to Joscelyn, "al Qaeda is saying, 'This is the new generation of jihadi leadership. This is the new bin Laden, who is going to ultimately lead us into the future."
“I don't think he's necessarily going to run al Qaeda tomorrow, but the family name, the fact that he's a younger guy, the fact that he's a true believer -- all that suggests that he likely will play an important role in al Qaeda going forward.”
By Phani Ch