Noor Bin Laden—a niece of infamous terrorist Osama Bin Laden and dedicated supporter of President Donald Trump—has warned followers on her Telegram channel to avoid further pro-Trump violence in Washington, D.C. and prepare for a years-long period of unrest.
Bin Laden came to national attention during last year's presidential election, garnering interest given the unexpected combination of her family name and her passionate support for Trump's nationalist agenda. She has since become a well-known name in right-wing social media circles.
Bin Laden is the daughter of Yeslam bin Ladin, Osama's half-brother. Her mother Carmen Dufour, a Swiss author, divorced her husband in 1988 and moved to Switzerland to raise Noor and her two other daughters.
The family had no known links with their deceased militant uncle, who was killed by U.S. special forces in Pakistan in 2011. Noor Bin Laden is Swiss but has told The New York Post she is "an American at heart" who considers the U.S. her "second home." She has previously said her family name "is antithetical to the values I hold."
Bin Laden has remained loyal to Trump despite his election loss to President-elect Joe Biden, his relentless peddling of baseless conspiracy theories, and the violence that seized Washington, D.C. last week.
On Monday, Bin Laden forwarded an appeal on her Telegram channel—which is labelled "FREEDOM 2021"—urging fellow Trump supporters and her 1,500 followers to avoid further confrontations in Washington and instead prepare for years of struggle.
"Do not go to any upcoming scheduled demonstrations in DC," the post read. "We're hearing there are potential demonstrations scheduled for the 17th and the 20th. Do not go. Around 15,000 National Guard are being deployed to guard the Inauguration on January 20th, and 10,000 will arrive by Saturday."
"Lay Low-Stock up on food, water, energy, survival gear, self defense, etc," the post continued. "Get together with family, neighbors, friends...Purchase land if you can...Build community and contacts."
"The next few years are going to be a wild ride," the post warned. "It will get worse before it gets better, but it will get better. The American spirit can never be vanquished, and always comes back with a vengeance under threat of oppression."
The warning appears to have originally been posted by far-right activist Vincent James, whose Telegram profile describes himself as the founder of the conservative Red Elephants group and a "Father, Catholic, Paleoconservative, and family man."
James uses his channel to post a range of pro-conservative media as well as disinformation and conspiracy theories casting doubt on the election result, criticizing recent racial justice protests and defending those who stormed the Capitol last week.
The Red Elephants claims to be a fringe media organization, but has been accused of spreading fake news, propaganda, and racism. The group's Facebook and Twitter pages have been banned, and James recently complained about being banned from the Dlive video streaming platform and claimed he is being "politically persecuted."
