A Palestinian volunteer told Time magazine in 1996: "He was a hero to us because he was always on the front line, always moving ahead of everybody else. He not only gave his money, but he gave himself. He came down from his palace to live with the Afghan peasants and the Arab fighters. He cooked with them, ate with them, dug trenches with them.
巴基斯坦籍軍官馬薩於一九九六接受美國時代雜誌專訪時曾表示：「賓拉登真是個英雄，永遠跑在最前線，隨時準備上陣，他不只是出錢，而是整個人都奉獻出來，他跟我們一起下廚、動手挖壕溝。」