Omar Bin Laden, son of Al Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden, has been banned from returning to France, where he had lived for several years with his British wife, Jane Felix-Browne, in a Normandy village, painting landscapes.
Normandy, proud to be home to six of the ‘most beautiful villages in France,’ was where Bin Laden had settled until his recent expulsion. The French Interior Ministry made the decision after allegations that Bin Laden posted comments on social media which were seen as glorifying terrorism.
French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau issued an order prohibiting Omar Bin Laden from re-entering the country, citing national security concerns. The judicial system had already upheld a prior deportation order. Retailleau stated that the administrative ban ensures Bin Laden “cannot return to France for any reason whatsoever,” but he did not provide specific details about the deportation’s timing or Bin Laden’s current whereabouts.
Omar Bin Laden, aged 43, is the fourth eldest son of Osama bin Laden. Born in Saudi Arabia, he spent his early years in Sudan and Afghanistan before leaving his father at the age of 19. He later settled in Normandy in 2016, where he became known for his landscape paintings. His friend, Pascal Martin, who assisted Bin Laden with selling his artwork, strongly denied the accusations, asserting they do not reflect the person he knows.
“Omar opposes Islamist ideology, and his livelihood comes solely from his art. He has been a responsible member of the community, paying his taxes and living peacefully,” Martin told Reuters. He added that Bin Laden had claimed his social media account was hacked, which could explain the controversial posts.
French authorities’ concerns appear to have been sparked by a social media post allegedly made on the anniversary of Osama bin Laden’s birthday. Although Reuters has not been able to verify the post’s content, local newspaper Le Publicateur Libre reported that it led to a police search for Bin Laden in the village of Domfront, Normandy, in July 2023. By then, Bin Laden had already left France and was said to be in Qatar.
Omar’s wife, Jane Felix-Browne, who adopted the name Zaina Mohammed after their marriage, is a British national and a former parish councillor from Cheshire. Their relationship attracted considerable media attention when it was confirmed in 2007, partly due to their age difference—Jane is more than 20 years his senior and had been married five times previously. Despite applying to settle in the UK following their marriage, Bin Laden’s request was rejected.
Omar Bin Laden has long distanced himself from his father’s violent legacy, leaving Osama bin Laden’s compound in Afghanistan well before his father’s death at the hands of U.S. forces in 2011. Since then, he had concentrated on his art and lived a quiet life in France until the deportation order. However, the recent allegations of glorifying terrorism have resulted in his expulsion from the country.
Currently residing in Qatar, Omar Bin Laden could not be reached for comment. The French government’s decision effectively bars him from returning, leaving his future uncertain.
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