Abdullah Yusuf Azzam Biography
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- Born Nov. 14, 1941
Abdullah Yusuf Azzam (Arabic: عبد الله يوسف عزام, romanized: ‘Abdu’llāh Yūsuf ‘Azzām; (1941-11-14)14 November 1941 – (1989-11-24)24 November 1989) was a Salafi jihadist, a Palestinian scholar, and theologian of Sunni Islam. During the Soviet–Afghan War of the 1980s, he advocated "defensive jihad" by Muslims worldwide to help the Afghan mujahideen fight against Soviet forces in the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan.
Azzam was a teacher and mentor to Osama bin Laden, and was one of the key figures who persuaded bin Laden to go to Afghanistan and back the mujahideen fighters there. Together, they cofounded the Maktab al-Khidamat, an organization that was created for the purpose of drawing foreign Muslim fighters (known as Afghan Arabs) to fight in the war. Following the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan in 1989, he promoted militant jihadist activities on behalf of other Muslims in other countries, and subsequently became known as the "father of global jihad".
Azzam was killed by a car bomb in Peshawar, Pakistan, on 24 November 1989.
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