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The Killing of Osama bin-Laden:
Middle Eastern Reactions
Algeria
He described Bin Laden's death as a victory. "This announcement came as a surprise, this is the natural outcome of several years of investigations. Terrorists live very short lives.” The MSP spokesman insisted that the battle against terrorism has not yet been won. "We must remain vigilant and continue to fight this phenomenon," he asserted.
"Active and dormant terrorist groups and networks will certainly react and strike as soon as possible to show the world that al-Qaeda is still alive and well.”
Egypt
“When it comes to the declared death of Bin Laden, Egypt is against all kinds of violence. The Egyptian government does not have a comment.”
“We believe that the death of Osama bin Laden after the revolutions in the region indicates to a new beginning for a normal relation with the United States in Middle East, so that it can reach a peace agreement and recognise an independent Palestinian state, allow the Palestinians to return to their homeland, withdrawal of American forces from the region and beginning of a normal relation with Arabs. We want to turn the page and leave behind the memories of 11 September 2001 attacks, which the mixing of politics and religion, behind us.”
“The US has dug its own grave from its own hand by announcing the death of Osama bin Laden”, expecting strong revenge strikes inside or outside the US, he reiterated that, “the killing of Osama bin Laden has not gone unnoticed among the Muslims.”
Iran
“Osama was just a puppet controlled by the Zionist regime in order to present a violent image of Islam after the September 11 attacks. Bin Laden's death reflects the passing of a temporary US pawn, and symbolizes the end of one era and the beginning of another in American policy in the region.”
Iraq
“We, like many people in the world, are delighted to see an end to his mentality and his devious ideology. Iraqis suffered a great deal at the hands of this man and his terrorist organization. Thousands of Iraqis were murdered and killed because of his ideologies. We as Iraqis have suffered enormously as a result of al-Qaeda and its leader.”
“The government of Iraq supports the international effort which will help us get rid of terrorist organisations. We in Iraq suffered a lot at the hand of these organisations, who take recourse to killing and whom Osama bin Laden represented, who invented the idea of killing and destruction of people.”
Israel
“It is a great piece of news for the free world, it is a great achievement for the security forces of the United States of America, it is a great achievement for the President of the United States, Barack Obama. This man was a mega-murderer, he killed thousands and thousands of people, people who were totally innocent. He tried to murder people and murder nations including the State of Israel. He reached his end. Terrorists and murderers are so dangerous. We shouldn't fall victim to believe that they are immune.”
“This is a resounding triumph for justice, freedom and the values shared by all democratic nations fighting shoulder-to-shoulder in determination against terrorism.”
Jordan
“The killing of Ben Laden is part of the global war against terrorism and would contribute to ending injustice campaigns in the West against Islam. Jordan is looking forward to seeing an end to terrorism, which distorted the fairness of the Arab causes, particularly the Palestinian issue, calling on the international community to exert more efforts to resolve this cause in a way that allows the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the 1967 borders.”
“Another Al-Qaeda could emerge unless the international community changed its attitude towards Islam, the Palestinian issue and corrupt leaders in Middle East” adding that the Muslim Brotherhood did not endorse the tactics of Al-Qaeda, but hailed Osama’s “commitment and dedication to his ideology till his death.”
Kuwait
“The US is happy over the death of bin Laden, but it has not realized that it fuelled terrorism in the Arab and Islamic world when it disregarded the resolutions of the United Nations (UN) and the Security Council on Israel. He pointed out the Zionist nation has destroyed the lives of the people in the occupied territories and desecrated the holy places, such as those of the Arabs and Muslims in Jerusalem, adding, Israel has waged racial wars that caused the death of thousands of Arabs and Muslims. He urged the US to review its policies and refrain from being biased towards the Zionists if it is really keen on maintaining peace in the Islamic world.”
Source:http://www.arabtimesonline.com/NewsDetails/tabid/96/smid/414/ArticleID/168685/reftab/96/Default.aspx
Lebanon
“If the people see that bin Laden has been assassinated at his own home, with his own wife and with some of his children and his friends in this cold blood, I think, why not? They will retaliate on the same way.”
.... in Arab’s mind the list of punishment for Bin Laden’s crimes was long, adding “You've got the invasion of Iraq, you've got Guantanamo, you've got Abu Ghraib. It's all part of this sort of difficult few years. And frankly, for the last few months, this is a region that is feeling hopeful, this is a region that is feeling empowered again.”
Mauritania
"Most of those who sympathise with the man do not truly understand his thinking or ideology. They just see in him a bold rebel."
Morocco
He said that while bin Laden's death did not directly concerns Morocco, the country has not been spared by terrorism. "We must therefore remain vigilant and take the security measures necessary to protect the country. The fact that the head of the confederation has been cut off does not mean that we are done with terrorism."
Palestine
“Getting rid of Bin Laden is good for the cause of peace worldwide but what counts is to overcome the discourse and the methods - the violent methods - that were created and encouraged by Bin Laden and others in the world.”
“We condemn the assassination of a Muslim and Arab warrior and we pray to God that his soul rests in peace. We regard this as the continuation of the American oppression and shedding of blood of Muslims and Arabs.”
“The West should recognise the atrocity of the American raid and the burial of [Ben Laden's body] at sea, Arabs and Muslims are human beings and the West should treat them as such, regardless of whether they are partisans or opponents of Osama Ben Laden.”
Saudi Arabia
An official Source has expressed the hope of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia that the elimination of Al-Qaeda leader will be a step towards supporting international efforts to combat terrorism and to dismantle its cells, as well as the elimination of deviant thought that stands behind it, especially as the people of the Kingdom have been among the most ones targeted by this terrorist organization through its crimes, killing of the innocent people, which is forbidden by Allah, the terrorization of the innocent people, and the destabilization of the security and stability of the society: Allah says in the Holy Quran, "If anyone slew a person - unless it be for murder or for spreading mischief in the land - it would be as if he slew the whole people."
“We hope that with the death of Osama Bin Laden, an evil has ended. He has been an evil to himself, to his immediate family and to the Arab countries as a whole.”
Tunisia
Al Qaeda's approach had "no real reference to Islamic Jihad. It is not lawful, given the correct Islamic concept of Jihad. Al-Qaeda offered the wrong solution to the right problem. The answer offered by bin Laden and al-Qaeda is blind violence. The outcome was disastrous. Arab revolutions, however, ended al-Qaeda's approach even before bin Laden's death."
"This is a political victory for Obama. It is a feat that is going to weaken the Jihadist movement in general, which is a prime victory for America.” Reacting to Obama's address where he stressed that he is against terrorism, not Islam, Ben Ticha said, "This is an excellent stand that clears any confusion." He added, "This is now a positive step in parallel with Arab revolutions, so as to build a relation of friendship and forgiveness between America and Arab nations."
Turkey
“This shows that terrorists and leaders of terrorist organisations are caught at the end, dead or alive. The killing of the leader of one of the most dreaded terrorist organisations should be a lesson for all.”
UAE
“Apart from claiming lives of thousands of innocent victims, terrorism has had significant negative impact on the image of Islam and Muslims. The killing of Osama bin Laded is a positive step that will enhance international efforts for combating terrorism. The death of bin Laden does not spell the end of Al Qaeda and terrorism. We must exercise caution and vigilance so as to preserve the security of the UAE and its people. Other countries should also do so.”
Yemen
“We hope the killing of Bin Laden will be the beginning of the end of terror.”
OIC
“The efforts to combat terrorism should deal with its real causes rather than its outlook, the main problem is the political system and deprivation of people’s right to self-determination under foreign occupation.”
Compiled by Md. Muddassir Quamar
Md. Muddassir Quamar is a research student at the School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University. Email: muddassir.2005@gmail.com
As part of its editorial policy, the MEI@ND standardizes spelling and date formats to make the text uniformly accessible and stylistically consistent. The views expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views/positions of the MEI@ND. Editor, MEI@ND: P R Kumaraswamy
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