Zahid Al-Sheikh

Zahid Al-Sheikh is an elder brother of 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammad. He volunteered to travel to Afghanistan to fight the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. Following the ouster of the Soviet forces, Zahid is reported to have played a role in planning terrorist projects. He is also reported to have shifted careers to the direction of non-governmental organizations that provided aid to refugees.

Zahid and two of his brothers traveled to Afghanistan in the mid-1980s. His two brothers are believed to have been killed in combat. His youngest brother, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, who was later to play a senior role in al Qaeda's leadership arrived in 1987. Zahid is reported to have introduced his younger brother to leading anti-Soviet fighters.

On September 26, 2001, shortly after al Qaeda's 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center, The Guardian published a report on their investigation as to whether there was evidence of a real link between Osama bin Laden and Mercy International, the charity Zahid helped run.