Hamza bin Laden, son of al-Qaida terrorist Osama bin Laden, has been added to the list of Specially Designated Global Terrorists by the U.S.
Bin Laden was made an official member of al-Qaida in 2014 after escaping the attack that killed his father and other family members in 2011. He threatened revenge against the U.S. and called for terrorist attacks on Western capitals in audio messages in 2015 and 2016.
“Hamza bin Laden is actively engaged in terrorism,” the State Department said Thursday, USA Today reported.
Adding bin Laden to the list of terrorists means he will not be able to participate in any financial transactions anywhere in the U.S. financial system, and that other U.S. agencies and governments can take action against him.
It had been thought that bin Laden might be a future leader of al-Qaida, but he has not shown enough intellect or operational ability to take over from Ayman al-Zawahiri, the current leader, according to reports cited by USA Today.
Bin Laden’s father Osama was killed by Navy SEALs in Pakistan in 2011 in retaliation for the 9/11 attacks in 2001. Hamza was initially thought to have been killed in the attack on his father but was later discovered to have survived. He is now called the “crown prince of terror.”
Hamza bin Laden's 2016 audio message was titled "We Are All Osama" and said in part, "We will continue striking you and targeting you in your country and abroad in response to your oppression of the people of Palestine, Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Somalia, and the rest of the Muslim lands that did not survive your oppression."