The death of Osama bin Laden

May 06, 2011 Letters

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Dear editor,
Osama bin Laden is dead. According to media reports he was shot and killed by the US military in a surprise attack in Pakistan which took not only the Pakistan authorities by surprise but the entire world.
For over a decade, the name Osama bin Laden was associated with terrorist activities which it was believed was responsible for the destruction of the World Trade Centre in New York among other targets, both inside and outside of the United States. It was the attack on the World Trade Centre however that led to the Bush administration declaring that the United States would unleash a ‘war on terrorism’ which saw in its wake the overthrow of the Saddam Hussein administration in Iraq and that of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan.
The death of Osama bin Laden has overshadowed all of the major news stories including that of the conflict in Libya which has now reached debilitating proportions. The latest position has been the reported killing of the youngest son of Gaddafi and that of his three grandchildren by NATO forces, which fired rockets in the compound where the family of Gaddafi is located.
Serious clashes are taking place in Syria where the military is in confrontation with protesters who are demanding the resignation of the Syrian leader. Quite a number of lives have been lost in the conflict which is showing no sign of abating despite strong condemnation by the United Nations and other western powers. All of these developments, at least momentarily, have paled into insignificance by the media frenzy over the death of bin Laden.
Several questions are being asked by political analysts regarding the role of the Pakistani authorities in the eventual demise of bin Laden who appeared to have taken residence, as it were, under the very nose of the Pakistani military, quite contrary to popular thinking that he was hiding in some inaccessible corner somewhere along the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan.
As it turned out, he was literally residing in an exclusive residential community in a relatively populated area with other family members, a reality which must be of some embarrassment to Pakistani intelligence. The United States have been pouring considerable sums of money to beef up the military in Pakistan as part of its offensive to flush out ‘terrorists.’ There are already some sharp exchanges between the United States and Pakistan over the issue. The Pakistani authorities clearly has some explaining to do on the issue especially given the substantial sums it has been receiving from the United States in the fight against terrorism.
The news of the death of bin Laden was greeted with mixed emotions by the international community. In the United States and other western countries, it was hailed as an important breakthrough in the war on terror, since as mentioned earlier he was seen as the mastermind behind a series of bombings and other criminal activities which resulted in the loss of thousands of innocent lives.
His passing is therefore seen as a psychological blow to the terrorist network operating under a variety of military and paramilitary groupings in particular the dreaded al Qaeda regarded as the most organised and deadly of the terrorist groupings.
On the other hand, there are those especially in the Muslim world who saw him as the face of a ‘Jihad’ or what is regarded as a ‘holy war’ against those who are perceived to impose western values which it is believed to be against the principles and teachings of Islam. Others view him as a ‘freedom fighter’ and lauded him for his courage to stand up to the might of the United States and other western countries.
The United States cannot escape some responsibility for the latter perception given its open and unapologetic support for Israel which has seized control over a significant portion of Palestinian lands during the war of annexation of 1967. Several United Nations Resolutions in support of the return of lands seized by Israel have been vetoed by the United States which apart from political and diplomatic support to Israel continues to render substantial military and financial aid to that country.
Israel continues to be among the highest per capita beneficiary of US military and donor support, a situation which the Israeli authorities have been exploiting to the fullest in their unjust battle against the Palestinian people. Despite warnings and condemnations by the United States, Israel continues in its illegal housing drive on seized Palestinian lands.
The Palestinian issue is central to the resolution of the tension between the West and the Islamic world which despite some differences are broadly united around the Palestinian cause. It is this perception of injustice that is at the root of several insurgencies some of which have been engaging in extremist actions to harm the United States with deadly consequences as in the case of the destruction of the World Trade Centre and other strategic locations.
The killing of Osama bin Laden is politically and psychologically a victory for the United States and appealed broadly to the collective conscience of millions in the United States and elsewhere. The United States administration should, however, seek to avoid any tendency to view his death as an ultimate triumph and seek instead politically and diplomatically to bridge the cultural divide which currently existed between that country and the Islamic world.
The democratization wave which is now engulfing the region could provide new opportunities for a change in US foreign policy towards the Middle East in particular over the vexed question of Palestine which as mentioned earlier is the root of much of the tension between the United States and the Arab nations.
Hydar Ally

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