‘Catastrophic if it is authentic’
Reaction from al-Qaeda and its sympathisers has so far been muted. The group’s propaganda wing has not yet issued a video tribute to bin Laden, nor has it commented on the reports of his death.
On internet forums sympathetic to al-Qaeda, a majority of commentators seem shocked by the reports of bin Laden’s death.
In the past, when US officials announced the death of high-ranking al-Qaeda members, commentators often rejected those reports out of hand. But the latest announcement by Obama, on the other hand, seems to be viewed as somewhat more credible.
“If it is true then we must thank Allah that America was not able to capture him alive,” one commentator wrote. “Else they would be humiliating him like Saddam Hussein.”
“God willing, news is not true. Catastrophic if it is authentic,” another wrote.
The US state department issued a worldwide travel alert for American citizens, and the US military increased its “force protection” level, which measures threats to military bases. A senior administration official said there were no specific threats reported, though.
‘No other country was informed’
One pressing question is what bin Laden’s death means for the already strained US-Pakistani relationship. The two countries have clashed publicly in recent months over US drone strikes in northwest Pakistan and over the case of Raymond Davis, the CIA contractor arrested for murder in Lahore and then released after “blood money” was paid to the families of his victims.
Obama had in the past praised the Pakistani government for its co-operation in the hunt for bin Laden. And some officials in the ISI, Pakistan’s spy agency, reportedly played a role in his eventual killing, according to media reports.
But the White House quickly rejected that claim: In a conference call on Sunday night, a senior administration official told reporters that Pakistan was not briefed in advance on the operation which led to bin Laden’s death.
“An operation like this has the utmost operational security attached to it,” the official said. “No other country was informed, and a small circle of people within the United States knew about it.”
Obama, in offering praise for Pakistan, also seemed to admonish the country’s leadership, calling it “essential that Pakistan continue to join us in the fight against al-Qaeda”. Other administration officials went further, describing bin Laden’s long hideout in Pakistan as a cause for concern and a potential source of friction in the relationship.
“We are very concerned about the situation in Pakistan… but this is something we need to work with the Pakistani government on,” a senior official said.
Also unclear is whether bin Laden’s death will have any impact on the war in Afghanistan, now in its tenth year. Obama did not mention any changes to strategy during his speech; bin Laden was killed in Pakistan, not Afghanistan; and US officials admit that only a handful of al-Qaeda members remain in Afghanistan.
In other words, the war – started to punish the perpetrators of the September 11 attacks – may well outlast the architect of those attacks.
Source: Al Jazeera
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