A letter written 21 years ago by Osama Bin Laden, the founder of Al Qaeda, has gone viral on TikTok with many users expressing their agreement with the terrorist.
The openly-antisemitic letter, written only a year after the September 11 attacks that cost the lives of nearly 3,000 people, was published in the Guardian in 2002 but was removed on November 15, 2023, after the social media trend became known to the site.
The hashtag #lettertoamerica has been viewed 4.5 million times on the application.
One user who made a video about the letter discussed the US military's actions in the Middle East. She captioned her post "Excited for the racists in my comments to arrive free palestine fr #fypシ #lettertoamerica #iraq #freepalestine", but did not address the antisemitic language used in the letter.
Another user expressed how the letter had changed her perception of the world.
What does the letter say?
The letter openly uses antisemitic language and addresses the issue of Palestinian statehood. It justifies the September 11 attack, blaming it on the Jewish people.
“Your former president warned you previously about the devastating Jewish control of capital [wealth] and about a day that would come when it would enslave you,” the letter begins.
In another antisemitic segment, Bin Laden wrote: “You continue to support the oppressive Israelis in their occupation of our Palestine in response to pressures on your administration by a Jewish lobby backed by enormous financial capabilities.
“Palestine has been under occupation for decades, and none of your presidents talked about it until after September 11 when Bush realized that your oppression and the tyranny against us were part of the reason for the attack,” the terrorist leader wrote on the subject of Palestinian statehood. “You have to implement a roadmap that returns the Palestine land [sic] to us, all of it, from the sea to the river; it is an Islamic land not subject to being traded or granted to any party.
“Palestine shall not be seen captive for we will try to break its shackles. The United States shall pay for its arrogance with the blood of Christians and their funds. “
The trend came to light after a recent poll found that only half of Americans aged 18-29 believe that Hamas is a terrorist organization.