Thursday, May 19, 2011

The Death of Osama bin Laden

Here we are nearly a decade after the al-Qaeda attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001, and the United States is celebrating the death of the mastermind behind the attacks. Nearly three weeks after the raid that killed the al-Qaeda leader, the dust has settled, the flood of news reports has subsided, and the American people are moving on to the next order of business. I can’t help sit back and consider the implications of such a momentous event for America and the effect the behavior of our government and society at large has had on me. 

What happened to put Osama bin Laden on the United States’ radar?

Osama bin Laden founded al-Qaeda, a global militant Islamic group, in 1988. Its stated primary purpose is to provoke the United States into invading a Muslim country. The Egyptian Islamic Jihad (EIJ), led by Ayman al-Zawahiri, formally merged with al-Qaeda in 1998 shortly before attacking four U. S. embassies in East Africa. The embassies suffered simultaneous bombings killing hundreds and placing both bin Laden and al-Zawahiri on the FBI’s Most Wanted Terrorists lists.

Although this action got the attention of the U. S. government, bin Laden captured the attention of the American public when he masterminded a series of attacks on U. S. soil on September 11, 2001. Four commercial passenger planes were hijacked and directed at each of the two towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, the Pentagon in Arlington, VA, and the fourth, which never reached its target, was aimed at either the White House or the Capitol Building in Washington, DC. Nearly 3,000 civilians lost their lives that day including firefighters and police officers.

A few days later, President George W. Bush launched the War on Terror in response to al-Qaeda actions. It has taken almost 10 years but the person responsible for provoking a decade long war is now dead. The intervening years have seen much criticism regarding the inability of the U. S. government and military to bring closure to such a large-scale national tragedy. Now that it is done, each one of us needs to ask ourselves, “How do I really feel about this?”

The events surrounding bin Laden’s death

I remember the feeling of revulsion and despair in 2001 when images of Middle Eastern children were shown on television dancing in the streets in celebration of the destruction of the World Trade Center and the deaths of nearly 3,000 Americans. I remember that feeling again in 2003, watching as American children celebrated the deaths of Saddam Hussein’s son and grandson. That feeling is hovering on the fringes of my mind yet again as I watch people celebrating the death of Osama bin Laden.

In the early hours of Monday, May 2, 2011, Osama bin Laden was shot through the head in his home by an elite team of Navy SEALs. Three other people were killed in the raid. No Americans were injured. The operation was handled delicately for several reasons. First, the compound was located in a residential neighborhood in an affluent section of Abbottabad District. The possibility of an air strike was dismissed because the risk of civilian deaths was too high. Second, we weren’t positive bin Laden was behind the compound walls. We knew a significant member of al-Qaeda was present but not who. Third, we hadn’t bothered to mention our plans to either Pakistan or our allies.

Following confirmation of his identity through photo analysis by the CIA, witness confirmation by a woman believed to be bin Laden’s wife, physical characteristics and a DNA test, bin Laden’s body was flown to the USS Carl Vinson and buried at sea according to Islamic customs. U. S. officials reported finding a country willing to take his remains would have been difficult and there was some concern that a land burial would result in a shrine to the terrorist leader and his ideals.

Justification for celebration?

Osama bin Laden was a brilliant monster. I do not dispute this fact. His actions resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of innocent people around the world. It is a testament to his intelligence that he was able to evade so many world governments that were actively searching for him. Even as our soldiers were given the “go ahead” to raid the compound in Abbottabad, our government was still not 100 percent sure bin Laden would be found inside.

The precautions he took kept him off our radar for 10 years while he still actively worked against us. He exiled his family from the rest of the world in an effort to keep himself safe. His wife and eight of his children were taken into custody following his death – the first time they had left the compound since arriving five years earlier. One of his daughters and his wife were both shot and injured while he hid behind them in the raid.

The thousands of Americans who lost loved ones and friends on September 11 have cause to feel relief, justification, even triumph. Our military personnel responsible for closing the book on this horrendous chapter in our history should also feel triumph. But those emotions should also be tempered by solemnity. A human being has died, regardless of his actions. His wife lost her husband, his children lost their father. We are justified in feeling a little vindication in his death, but I can’t wrap my heart and mind around feeling celebratory.

So, now what?

For many people in this country, the death of bin Laden was hardly a blip on their daily radar. It was an interesting news report, worth a couple conversations over the next couple of days, but nothing compared to the mania that existed when news coverage of the World Trade Center collapse first aired. It is rather anticlimactic. I believe much of that stems from the fact that we have to take the government’s word for it that he was killed on May 2 and buried at sea. There are no pictures. There is no body. There is little evidence that this even happened the way they say it did – for reasons of National Security, I’m sure.

Moving forward, I’ve got some bad news for everyone. Al-Qaeda is NOT out of commission. Instead the power center has simply shifted from Pakistan to Yemen. Rather symbolically I think, bin Laden, who was the FBI’s most wanted terrorist for more than 10 years, has been replaced. Ayman al-Zawahiri has taken his place at number one with a long line of terrorist behind him waiting their turn. It begs the question, will it ever end? 

Probably not.

But, going into an election year, President Barak Obama gets to be the President who killed Osama bin Laden. 

How’s that for upping the ante?

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