Ayman al-Zawahiri is a well respected Islamic theologian who was born to an upper middle class family in Maadi, a suburb of the Egyptian capital, Cairo. Ayman's father, Mohammed al-Zawahiri came from a long dynasty of doctors and scholars. Mohammed was a military doctor as well as a professor of medicine at Cairo University. Ayman's mother, Umayma Azzam came from a family that was very politically active. Ayman himself was very active in politics in his early years. When he turned 14, he joined the Muslim brotherhood, the largest and most influential islamist movement and the largest political opposition in most Arab states. Ayman took control of the Muslim Brotherhood following the execution of Muhammad Qutb on charges of conspiracy. .
Over a period of time, the Muslim Brotherhood joined other political cells and formed the Egyptian Islamic Jihad.Ayman graduated from Cairo University at the top of his class and went to work as a military doctor in the Egyptian Army. After three years of service in the Army he was discharged from the military and opened his own private medical clinic. Later he would continue his studies and receive his masters in surgery in 1978.
Ayman met Azza Ahmed Nowari at school and in 1978 they were married. Ayman and his wife had five children. In 2001, Ayman wife and one of his daughter's, Aisha, was killed during an attack from the United States shortly after the 9/11 attacks. U.S. Troops had bombarded buildings in the city of Gardez. In my opinion, this single event increased his already growing hatred for Western Culture and more to the point, a hatred for the United States. Soon after the World trade Center attacks on September 11th, Ayman al-Zawahiri was listed on The FBI's most wanted list along with 22 other terrorists. This was followed by The Taliban officially granting citizenship to al-Zawahiri, Osama Bin Laden and other terrorists. Ayman met Osama Bin Laden after he came to Afghanistan after he was released from prison.