In fact, the al-Qaeda founder’s closest relatives are now living in a secret compound in Iran, though Tehran has repeatedly denied that any of his relatives were in the country, ‘The Times’ quoted members of the family as saying.
There has been uncertainty about the family’s whereabouts for the past eight years, with reports that some of the children had been killed in bombings, while others had joined their father in planning terrorist attacks. But, 29-year-old Omar, the al-Qaeda leader’s fourth eldest son has claimed he found out last month that the group, including one of bin Laden’s wives, six of his children and 11 of his grandchildren, had been kept in a high-security compound near Tehran.
He said the family members called him in November and narrated how they had fled Afghanistan before 9/11 and walked to the Iranian border — but they have been prevented from contacting the outside world “for their own safety”.
“The Iranian government did not know what to do with this large group of people that nobody else wanted, so they kept them safe. For that we owe them much gratitude, and thank Iran from the depth of our heart.”
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