TEHRAN – Tehran denied on Tuesday allegations made by Saudi Crown PrinceMohammed bin Salman that Iran was harbouring Osama bin Laden’s son andsupporting him as the new leader of al Qaeda.
Decades-old animosity between Sunni Muslim kingdom of Saudi Arabia andrevolutionary Shi’ite Iran has deepened in recent years as the two sideswage proxy wars in the Middle East and beyond, including in Iraq, Syria andYemen.
Iran’s murky and fluid relationship with al Qaeda has contributed totensions with Riyadh, which previously accused Tehran of backing al Qaedaand sheltering its members.
Prince Mohammed told CBS in an interview that Iran was protecting al Qaedaoperatives, including some of bin Laden’s relatives.
“This includes the son of Osama bin Laden, the new leader of al Qaeda. Helives in Iran and works out of Iran. He is supported by Iran,” he said.Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi called crown prince’scomments a “big lie”.
Hamza bin Laden was one of several bin Ladens who ended up in Iran afterthe September 11 attacks on New York in 2001. Documents recovered from hisfather’s compound in Pakistan after he was killed in a
US raid in 2011 said Hamza was, at least for a period, held under housearrest Iran. His current whereabouts are not known.
Since Osama bin Laden’s death, al Qaeda has been led by his former deputy,Ayman al-Zawahiri. Nonetheless, Hamza has issued a number of messages onbehalf of the network in recent years, threatening further violence againstthe West.
The group has been sidelined significantly by its rival and foe, themilitant organisation Islamic State.
Iran’s Qasemi said that after the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan began in2001, some al Qaeda fighters had crossed into Iran illegally, but that theyhad been arrested and extradited to their countries of origin. Theseincluded bin Laden family members with Saudi citizenship.
“Bin Laden’s daughter was extradited to the Saudi embassy in Tehran,”Qasemi was quoted as saying by Tasnim news agency.
“Upon consultation with Saudi Arabia, other members of Bin Laden familywere deported through the same border they had illegally entered Iran,” headded.