A Kuwaiti newspaper has published slain Al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden's last message to his wives and children.
The four-page document is a will, dated December 14, 2001, months after the 9/11 attacks that made him the most wanted man in the world.
In it, Bin Laden apologizes to his children for his absence in their lives, "You, my children, I apologize for giving you so little of my time because I responded to the need for Jihad," he writes.
He also instructs his children not to follow in his footsteps - specifically telling them not to join Al Qaeda. He cites precedents from Islamic texts as a justification for forbidding his children to engage in 'holy war'. The UK's Daily Telegraph reports that Omar bin al-Khattab, the successor of the Prophet Mohammad as Islam's leader, also left written instructions to his son, Abdullah, not to wage holy war.
The document is largely devoted to justifying Bin Laden's efforts to destroy America and Israel. There is no mention of passing on his possessions or assets, despite the fact that Bin Laden was at one point believed to have a personal fortune worth tens of millions of dollars.
The terrorist leader's will had a message for his wives, "don't consider marrying again, and devote yourselves to your children and guide them to the right path."
He signed the document "Your brother Abu Abdullah Osama Muhammad Bin Laden."
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