[kanawa]

"Al Qaeda was created and became empowered by the U.S. presence in Saudi Arabia following the first Gulf War,"

Gee, and here I thought it was bin Laden and his Daddy's money. Thanks for clearing that up Tim.

[angkor]

"Al Qaeda was created and became empowered by the U.S. presence in Saudi Arabia following the first Gulf War,"

Al Qaeda became empowered by the sick religion of Islam, and its teaching that killing and murdering infidels (especially civilians) is the highest form of spiritual advancement.