Former Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden

A letter from Osama bin Laden detailing when jihadists should be allowed to masturbate has been revealed.

The Al-Qaeda leader had such a pull on his followers that he was able to dictate when they pleasured themselves.

In a memo marked top secret, he wrote to one of his trusted aides in North Africa saying that in the extreme conditions of being kept separate from their wives, the terrorists could masturbate.

It was seized along with 49 other documents by the US in 2011, and now they have been made public by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI).

In it, the one-time world's most wanted man discussed attacks on America and targeting France should efforts fail against the US.

But, he also lifts the lid on the sexual activity of his jihadis.

In the letter, he wrote: 'Another very special and top secret matter - it pertains to the problem of the brothers who are with you in their unfortunate celibacy and lack of availability of wives for them in the conditions that have been imposed on them.

'We pray to God to release them.

'God is not ashamed of the truth.

'As we see it, we have no objection to clarifying to the brothers that they may, in such conditions, masturbate, since this is an extreme case.'

Terror wrist! The letter sent by Osama bin Laden to his trusted aide in North Africa

The letter goes on to say: 'The ancestors approved this for the community.

'They advised the young men at the time of the conquest to do so.

'It has also been prescribed by the legists when needed, and there is no doubt that the brothers are in a state of extreme need.'

Although the control Al-Qaeda's top terrorist had on his militants may be shocking, his liberal view on masturbation should come as no surprise.

In 2015, US officials refused to release details on the 'extensive' porn collection found in Osama bin Laden's Pakistani bolt-hole, because of the 'nature' of the smut.

The DNI released a list of books the 9/11 mastermind was reading when he was killed six years ago, as well as a trove of letters he exchanged with family members from the lair.

Osama bin Laden's lair was discovered by the US to have included a huge stash of porn

While it was widely reported that Navy SEALs recovered a large digital collection of sex videos from the compound when they staged a secret mission to kill bin Laden in 2011, the US government said it was not going to describe or release details on any of the pornographic materials.

'We have no plans to release that at this point in time,' Brian Hale, a spokesman for the DNI, told The Telegraph.

'Due to the nature of the content the decision was made not to release it.'

Officials also refused to describe what kind of porn was kept in the bin Laden household.

Just two weeks after bin Laden was shot dead inside his Abbottabad compound, Reuters reported that pornography was recovered from the property.