Final answer:
Bin Laden hoped the 9/11 attacks would provoke the US into a costly war in the Middle East, destabilizing Western-allied regimes and draining resources, which would lead to a resurgence of his version of Islam.
Step-by-step explanation:
Osama bin Laden orchestrated the 9/11 attacks with the expectation that it would incite a broader conflict, drawing the United States and the Western powers into a prolonged war in the Middle East. This conflict was anticipated to drain their resources, weaken their influence in the region, and potentially lead to the collapse of regimes in the Middle East that were allied with the West.
The influence of the West was seen by bin Laden as contributing to the decline of his interpretation of Islam, despite the wealth it had brought to his family. When the US invaded Afghanistan to dismantle al-Qaeda and remove the Taliban from power, it was both a retaliation and an attempt to prevent future attacks. The initial success of Operation Enduring Freedom was followed by military attention shifting to Iraq, which inadvertently gave bin Laden and the Taliban time to regroup, as US resources and focus were redirected.