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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to wonder with what authority USA killed Osama Bin Laden.

342 replies

Mamaz0n · 02/05/2011 09:43

Since when has murder been justice?

Don't get me wrong, i think it is a good thing that he has died. I think that to imprison him would have caused massive uprising in violence and kidnaps etc.

But it bothers me that America has just decided that this man is guilty and therefore acted to murder him.

It is my (probably naive) understanding that you can't be extradited to a state that has the death penalty, so how exactly can Obama's order to kill Bin Laden be at all legal?

I have even just heard that the Pakistani government were not even aware that the USA were taking this action.

I am sorry but it sits very uncomfortably with me.

OP posts:
DarthNiqabi · 02/05/2011 11:01

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

tryingtoleave · 02/05/2011 11:01

Pakistan is fighting on their own behalf too. al-quaeda was taking over large sections of the country before the battles last year.

Taffeta · 02/05/2011 11:04

The DC caught DH watching it on Sky News. A bunch of Americans celebrating. They wanted to know what they were celebrating. I don't think its OK to celebrate someone's death.

izzywhizzyletsgetbusy · 02/05/2011 11:04

Precisely, CatPower - retaliation is the name of the game played by extremists of all persuasions.

The truth is that conflict is frequently engineered by those in power as people can easily be persuaded to unite against a perceived 'common enemy' - it really woudn't do for people to unite against the establishment.

If the world's a more dangerous place today that's not down to the likes of you or I, but guess who's more likely to be exposed to those dangers while going about their everyday business?

slavewife · 02/05/2011 11:07

The body was buried at sea so it would not enflame the extremists, this way his body cannot be paraded or made into a shrine, it was the right thing to do morally and propaganda victory. I'm glad its another monster, religion is nothing to do with these genocide killers, religion is just a mask to disguise their evil minds!

slavewife · 02/05/2011 11:11

Another monster off this world! That was supposed to say, stupid bb!

polarbabe · 02/05/2011 11:13

darthNiqabi, if that post was directed at me - my answer is yes, hundreds of thousands. Here are the numbers I know:

  • 1992 Hotel bombing in Aden, killed 2 people
  • 1995 murder of Rabbi Meir Kahane
  • 1992/1993 Algeria -150,000 killed (other reports put number at 200,000)
  • Luxor boombing 1997 - 67 killed
  • 5,000 people in Hazaras
  • Nearly 3,000 9/11 attacks
  • 4 german tourists
  • 4 US and 2 Indians in Saudi Arabia (indicted)
  • Embassy bombing in Kenya, 212 people killed
  • Embassy bombing Tanzania, 11 killed
  • 17 killed on the USS Cole
polarbabe · 02/05/2011 11:19

A jihadist will kill anyone and everyone given a chance and we are supposed to pussyfoot around him because it disturbs are sensibilities. Fuck that.

polarbabe · 02/05/2011 11:20

our - I give up

HerHissyness · 02/05/2011 11:21

I'm content that he has gone. Do I fear reprisals. No. But those cowards never scared me.

They can bomb whatever they like, kill hundreds of thousands of us, but the truth is that FREEDOM WILL ALWAYS WIN over oppression. The sooner those brainwashed gahl realise that, the better.

As water always finds it's level, so does freedom.

bemybebe · 02/05/2011 11:22

I think it is normal that the death of a person, especially in a suspected execution, sits uncomfortably with people used to legal justice process. That said, I personally prefer him dead this way than alive at large.

World's most dreadful regimes, dictators, terrorists are given a lot of leeway because they are not "supposed' to respect international laws - hey, they are terrorists and dictators after all - whilst judicial system in democratic countries should be functioning seamlessly or risking a mistrial. This is normal, I guess. This also does not sit comfortably with me.

Now, if Osama surrendered himself to international tribunal to face a proper court and was murdered during the process before the 'guilty' verdict I would be indignant just as you are mamaz0n. But he didn't. He was in hiding for decades commanding and inspiring murders of innocents all around the world.

He was killed avoiding the trial and the world is a better place (probably not safer, sadly) without him. I will not be shedding any tears. Neither am I celebrating.

HerHissyness · 02/05/2011 11:22

Ayman al Zahiri is more operational though, he surely is more dangerous than OBL was.

was that still feels good Smile

HerHissyness · 02/05/2011 11:23

It's Zawahiri, isn't it? Blush didn't bother to google it before hand....

scaryteacher · 02/05/2011 11:23

Knowing where he was, the US had to get him either dead or alive. This way was cleanest perhaps and stopped a TLAM whizzing over a civilian area maybe creating greater damage and loss of life.

Personally I would have liked to see him tried and then executed, but keeping him secure would have been too much hassle.

ZZZenAgain · 02/05/2011 11:23

what does "gahl" mean HH?

theoldbrigade · 02/05/2011 11:26

He was buried at sea because his homeland refused to have him back .

Pakistan must have had some involvement although how he could be living so close to a military base without anyone knowing does seem more than a little suspicious.

Whatever, I have no problem concerning his death.

FabbyChic · 02/05/2011 11:28

Sorry but the man deserved to die. Taking him and making him stand up in a court would never have worked.

slavewife · 02/05/2011 11:32

I think the repercussions of putting him to trial, would have been more destructive and also caused many more deaths (I think his death will still lead of innocent people being killed however) and also cost millions, if not billions, in protecting him\court case etc... At least this way the money can go to better use!

onagar · 02/05/2011 11:32

No idea if the US have lied about the circumstances. They certainly would lie if it suited them and yes politicians (there and here) would have someone killed to increase their election chances. I have no illusions that they are saints.

However this wasn't an criminal offence where you might arrest one of your citizens and look at rehabilitation etc - this was part of an ongoing war declared by Bin Laden.

If you examine any war (ours too) it is impossible to justify your actions by normal standards. The point about war is that it's what you do when all else fails and the alternative (letting them murder people) is not acceptable.

As for Bin Laden he committed suicide in my opinion. In effect he said "I'm going to kill your men, your women and your children and the only way to stop it is to kill me" So we did.

Vallhala · 02/05/2011 11:41

TBH what concerns me far more than the alleged death of Bin Laden and whether it's legal or not, are the number of bledding heart bloody liberals out there.

I suspect that some of the liberals aren't old enough to have had a close relationship with grandparents and great grandparents who fought in and/or lived through the first and second world wars and have never sat and talked at length with Nanny and Grandad about what they did to celebrate VE Day.

People are celebrating in the streets at the death of a tyrant eh? Not exactly new, is it?

polarbabe · 02/05/2011 11:42

Amen Vallhala

partyhats · 02/05/2011 11:45

How do they know it is him, where did they get a DNA sample for him?

scaryteacher · 02/05/2011 11:48

It will be interesting to see if Somalian piracy dries up now. Agree about the bleeding heart liberals Valhalla; can't say I'd have bothered about burying the bugger within 24 hours.

tryingtoleave · 02/05/2011 11:52

Absolutely Vallhala. It is only the most bloody minded, thoughtless anti-american leftiness that can explain some of the outrage on this thread. If nothing else, Bin laden was fighting for a regime where girls would not be educated. You would think that would put any mnetter against him. And I wonder if any of them ever think about what the world would be like if he and his kind won. It may seem a farfetched possibility, but it is a possibility that is made more likely by the self-doubt and reluctance to stand up for our principles in the west.

polarbabe · 02/05/2011 11:52

OBL was one of 54 children born to Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden. Osama bin Laden had about 25 children. So plenty of sources they could retrieve DNA samples for comparison.