Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden | |
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Native name | محمد بن عوض بن لادن |
Born | 1908 Hadhramaut coast, Yemen, Ottoman Empire |
Died | 3 September 1967 (aged 58-59) Oom, 'Asir Region, Saudi Arabia |
Cause of death | Airplane accident |
Citizenship | Saudi Arabia |
Known for | Founder of Saudi Binladin Group |
Spouse(s) | 22 wives |
Children | 56 including Osama bin Laden Tarek bin Laden Salem bin Laden Bakr bin Laden |
Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden (Arabic: محمد بن عوض بن لادن; 1908 – 3 September 1967) was a multi-billionaire Saudi businessman working primarily in the construction industry. He founded what is today the Saudi Binladin Group and became the wealthiest non-royal Saudi, establishing the wealth and prestige of the Bin Laden family. He is known for being the father of Osama bin Laden.
Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden was born on the Hadhramaut coast of south Yemen in 1908 to Awad bin Aboud bin Laden, a Kindite Hadhrami tribesman from al-Rubat, a village in Wadi Doan; Mohammed's paternal grandfather was Aboud bin Laden, the son of Ali bin Laden, one of four brothers (the others being Ahmed, Mansour, and Zaid) from whom the four bin Laden clans trace their ancestry. His son Osama bin Laden was the notorious founder of al-Qaeda, the Sunni militant Islamist organization.
Poor and uneducated, Mohammed emigrated to Tihamah before World War I, initially working as a porter in Jeddah. In 1930, he started his own construction business and after coming to the attention of Abdul Aziz Ibn Saud, first monarch of Saudi Arabia, he eventually achieved such success that his family became known as "the wealthiest non-royal family in the kingdom."
Mohammed bin Laden's enormous financial success was ascribed to a shrewd business sense, fealty to Saudi Arabia's rulers, reliability and a willingness to offer the lowest bid on construction contracts.