Osama bin Laden’s son banned from entering France
French authorities have ordered Omar bin Laden, the son of slain Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, to leave the country due to social media posts, as announced by France’s interior minister on Tuesday.
Born in Saudi Arabia and having spent his early years there, Omar bin Laden, 43, has also lived in Sudan and Afghanistan. He left his father at the age of 19 and settled in Normandy, northern France, in 2016, where he pursued a career in painting.
France’s new interior minister, Bruno Retailleau, stated on X (formerly Twitter) that Omar bin Laden had been residing in the Orne department of Normandy as the spouse of a British national.
The minister stated that Omar bin Laden “posted comments on his social networks in 2023 that advocated terrorism.”
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“As a result, the prefect of Orne issued an order for him to leave French territory,” Retailleau explained. “The courts have confirmed the legality of this decision in the interests of national security.”
Retailleau also mentioned that he had signed a ban preventing Omar bin Laden from returning to France for any reason. He did not provide further details, and it remains unclear whether Omar bin Laden has already left the country.
Omar bin Laden’s marriage to British woman Jane Felix-Browne, a grandmother who had been divorced five times and is over two decades his senior, garnered significant media attention when it was confirmed in 2007. After their marriage, she adopted the Muslim name Zaina Mohammed. Omar bin Laden had sought to live in the UK, but his application was rejected by British authorities.
Osama bin Laden, the son of a wealthy Saudi construction tycoon, is thought to have fathered around two dozen children.
In 2011, U.S. special forces killed the founder of Al-Qaeda in Pakistan.
Retailleau has pledged to restore “order” in matters of immigration and crime, asserting that “the rule of law is neither intangible nor sacred.”
His appointment as France’s top police official reflects the government’s shift to the right under new Prime Minister Michel Barnier, following the hung parliament resulting from this summer’s legislative elections.
Proofreading by Uchechi Ojo, Sub-editor at Neptune Prime.
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