And I'm not talking about the rock formation in New Hampshire, but the great, great, great Granddaddy of Osama Bin Ladin, himself: Hasan-bin-Sabah, the 11th Century AD Islamic terrorist.

Hasan-bib-Sabah had his Alamut, as Osama has his Tora Bora Mountain, within which he and his followers took refuge from their enemies.

And what were his followers like? Here's a nice little scene from someone's encounter in the Valley of Paradise:

"Two men in the year 1092 stood on the ramparts of a medieval castle - the Eagle's Nest - perched high upon the crags of the Persian mountains: the personal representative of the Emperor and the veiled figure who claimed to be the incarnation of God on earth. Hasan, son of Sabah, Sheikh of the Mountains and leader of the Assassins, spoke: 'You see that devotee standing guard on yonder turret-top? Watch!'

"He made a signal. Instantly the white-robed figure threw up his hands in salutation, and cast himself two thousand feet into the foaming torrent which surrounded the fortress.

"'I have seventy thousand men - and women - throughout Asia, each one of them ready to do my bidding. Can your master, Malik Shah, say the same? And he asks me to surrender to his sovereignty! This is your answer. Go!'"

...from A History of Secret Societies, by Arkon Daraul.

For an excellent website on this fellow go here: [url]http://www.phinnweb.com/neuro/assassins.html[/url]

Whenever you get the chance.

Eric The(PurveyorOfLostWorlds)Hun[>]:)]

Never heard of him.

Heck, even Betty Boop had a run-in with the Old Man of the Mountain - see [url]http://www.heptune.com/oldmanbb.html[/url]

I distinctly remember the old Cab Calloway song being redone to match the actions of the characters in this cartoon.

Kinda scary for those times.

Eric The(CondemnedToNeverForget)Hun[>]:)]

yes he was only defeated twice, once by the Knights Templar and once by the Mongols.  
HAHAHA the first from my Father's side of the family and the second from my mother's side...
The old man also was a major user of Hashish, he would get his nocvices stoned and brain wash them into thinking they had gone to paradise.

When did the Knights Templar defeat the Assassins?

I thought they made a pact with the Assasins to unite against the Mongols. I could be in err there.
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Let's call it what it is: The Nineth Crusade.

this is where we get the word "assassin", from "hashishin". got to watch out for those druggies, as any cop who's had to deal with a pcp user can attest.

Is he related to the man on the silver mountain?

sounds a little like Massada, thanks for the read.

Hasan-Bin-Sabah?...Hasan Bin Sabah?.....thats the m#therf####r who wouldn't super size my Double Whopper Value meal!

As usual shotar, your thinking is way out in front!

Thanks for reading the thread!

Yes, and I certain that Osama is going to be the next Old Man of the Mountain, especially so if he escapes the trap he's in now!

Eric The(OldWivesAreGenerallyToBeTrusted)Hun[>]:)]

No, I have not heard of him.  However, I used to pal around with one of his relative.  If I remember correctly his name was Hardly Been Sober.  We spent a whole week looking for his brother who owns a cab and is a part time writer.  He was trying t sell his book: Ali Baba and the 101 dalmations.