Americas

Home page

Americas

US celebrating bin Ladenâ€™s death - EXCLUSIVE - REPORTING - PHOTOSESSION

US celebrating bin Ladenâ€™s death -<font color=red> EXCLUSIVE - REPORTING - PHOTOSESSION</font>

05 May 2011 07:20 (UTC +04:00)

Washington. Isabel Levine â€“ APA. For the last two and a half days America and the world have been astonished by the long-expected news â€“ Osama bin Laden, the number one wanted terrorist and leader of al Qaeda, is dead as a result of successive operation of US.

Joy over bin Ladenâ€™s death

The moment the news became public, people started gathering near the White House in Washington DC and ground zero in New York. They shouted happy slogans and praised America, its government and US soldiers.

â€œThis is a big moment for the whole world, but for the US specially. This is a revenge for those who lost their loved ones in 9/11. This is a relief that America has been waiting for since then. Bin Laden was evil and may he burn in hellâ€, said a 35-year-old high school teacher from Fairfax County, VA, Susan Walker, who was among the joyful crowd near the White House.

This is a good time for Muslims too, finally people will see that we are against terrorism, and we support peace and friendship, - said Buner Siddiqi, a US Pakistani.

All US newspapers put the bin Laden news on the main page with similar headlines â€“ â€œOsama bin Laden deadâ€, â€œUS killed Osamaâ€, many picked up president Barack Obamaâ€™s phrase as a subhead - â€œJustice has been doneâ€, another publication named its article â€œRot in Hellâ€.

â€œWe welcome the death of bin laden with happiness and greatest reliefâ€, Haris Tarim, representative of Washington DC US Muslims, said. â€œMuslims in the US want this page closedâ€, he added.

American Turks and Azerbaijanis also praised the operation.

â€œOn behalf of 500,000 Turkish Americans and 300,000 Turkic Americans nationwide, we thank the men and women of the US Armed Forces who sacrificed so that the world may live in freedomâ€, says the statement, released by US Turks and Azerbaijanis May 3.

And arising concern over security

But as the first joy wave passes by, people and authorities raise concerns over security in the country. Although US officials said security issues will not be a problem, one could feel that safety measures have been stepped up significantly.

Sebastian Gorka, an expert at Hudson Institution, said the war on terror unlike WWI or WWII â€œwith a formal surrender by our adversary, or with the signing of a cease fire or a formal peace settlement. Our enemy is not a nation with a government or regular military forces. Some have even said that terrorism cannot be defeated, simply suppressed; and in the last decade, America has been successful at suppressing al Qaedaâ€.

â€œReport suspicious activityâ€ by calling a number, say billboards on the interstates and highways in DC. Security was stepped up in airports as well, a Homeland Security official told APA.

â€œWe keep the situation under control, but taking into consideration every detailâ€, a security official at Dallas International Airport, told APA.

Besides, the US State Department alerted US citizens travelling and residing abroad to be careful. â€œThis is a totally normal security measureâ€, a Homeland Security Office representative added.

How about proof that he is dead?

With all the agiotage some wonder whether Osama was really killed. The White House press-Secretary Jay Carney released more details of the operation May 3 afternoon, saying bin Laden didnâ€™t have weapons but resisted, he was killed, but his wife was only shot in the leg. A number of his relatives are now being treated in Pakistan from where they will be sent to their respective countries.

Many demand a picture of Osamaâ€™s dead body, as a proof. But the White House said may 3 of the dead man is "gruesome" and that "it could be inflammatory" if released.

Carney said the White House is thinking whether to make the photo public, but officials are concerned about the "sensitivity" of doing so. Carney said "there is not some roiling debate here about this.â€

â€œItâ€™s understandable why the government doesnâ€™t want to release the photos, but we, those who suffered from 9/11 attack, want to make sure he is really deadâ€, said Joanne Henings, relative of a 9/11 terrorism act victim.

What will happen to al Qaida?

This is another question analysts ask over and over again.

â€œAlthough al Qaeda is organizationally weakened, it can ideologically survive its founderâ€™s death. In fact, the strain of violent fanatical Islam upon which al Qaeda was built was not founded by bin Laden, or anyone of his generation, but predates even the Muslim Brotherhoodâ€™s creation in the 1920sâ€, Qorka says.

â€œIn the meantime, Osama bin Laden will never kill againâ€, he adds.

â€œBin Ladenâ€™s death is a demoralizing blow against al-Qaeda that could be followed up by additional strikes against other al-Qaeda leaders. But though this is a significant achievement, much work remains. First and foremost, the United States must finish the job in Afghanistan and not relent in defeating the Talibanâ€, says Lisa Curtis, expert at the Heritage Foundation.

â€œAyman al-Zawahiri will almost certainly take over as al-Qaedaâ€™s new chief. Zawahiri had in recent years become both the public voice and operational planner of al-Qaedaâ€, Curtis guesses.
Al Qaeda still exists in Iraq and it continues conducting terrorist attacks, says another expert, Director of the Brookings Institution.

â€œIraqâ€™s internal political developments, not Bin Ladenâ€™s legacy, inspiration, leadership or anything else, will likely determine the future of al Qaeda and Salafi terrorism more generally in Iraq, he adds.

Will US-Pakistani relations suffer?

Bin laden appeared to be living not somewhere high in the mountains, as many have predicted, but in a compound in Abbatabad not far from the countryâ€™s capital Islamabad and right near the Pakistani Military Academy.

â€œPakistan has been saying they are our main partners in the war against terror, and they want us to believe they didnâ€™t notice bin Laden for five years under their noses? Something is fishy about thisâ€, says a George Washington University student of political science faculty Robert Kellen.

US Congress members have voiced a similar concern in the Congress May 3, saying US has allocated more than $20 billion to Pakistan in the last 10 years and US government has already asked $3 billion more.

Richard Weitz, an expert at the Hudson Institution, says â€œThe killing of Osama bin Laden in a comfortable neighborhood not far from Pakistanâ€™s capital has again illustrated the fundamentally ambiguous nature of the security relationship between Washington and Islamabadâ€.

â€œBin Ladenâ€™s discovery and death in central Pakistan will certainly complicate relations between Waashington and Islamabad in the short term, with the trust deficit likely to deepen, at least initially. But sufficient mutual interests will remain to serve as the foundation for a more beneficial relationship moving forwardâ€, he adds.

What are the outcomes for Azerbaijan?

Freshman Louisiana Congressman Cedric Richmond who was part of a group of US House members and made a week-long trip to the Czech Republic, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Afghanistan, said he heard the news at the end of the trip.

He and other Congress members, who just recently visited Azerbaijan and other countries, said that they appreciate the support of all those countries and their impact in international coalition in Afghanistan.

â€œAlmost a decade after the malicious attack on our homeland and on our countrymen, the mastermind of that attack, Osama bin Laden, has met justice. This is a historic moment in the worldâ€™s repudiation of terrorism and moves us towards a more peaceful and just worldâ€, said Richmond.

Congressman Jon Runyan, who also was on a trip to Baku, in his respect said:
â€œI also know that this is not the end. We still face an enemy that hates the American way of life and remains determined to kill us. Bin Ladenâ€™s confirmed death is a critical milestone in the Global War on Terror and today is a great day for America and those around the world who love freedom."

Overall analysts say Azerbaijan and the US will continue close cooperation in many spheres, including security, as there are a lot of challenges ahead in terms of war on terror, and the two partners will support each other.