Questions about the killing
Tuesday, 10 May 2011
Gopal Sengupta
Like many, I wonder why bin Laden was not captured alive, even when he was found unarmed during the operation. Did the U.S. want to finish him off when it said it wanted to capture him alive or dead? US President's statement that "justice has been done" is unacceptable. Justice would have been done only if bin Laden had been produced before courts and punished under the law. The world is yet to know the whole truth about his death. The most important question is: why wasn't he taken alive? Is it because he might have walked free for lack of evidence if he were brought to trial? The pictures of the three men killed along with bin Laden make one wonder why the U.S. is not willing to publish the picture of his body. If his pictures are gruesome, so are the ones which have been made public. Was he shot beyond possible recognition? Or was the operation eyewash? Is his killing really something that calls for celebrations? The time is to reform radical religious education to root out extremism. Secondly, how genuine is the news that he is dead? On what basis did the international media publish the news when pictures of his body were not even shown to them? The U.S. action to eliminate bin Laden is fraught with dangerous consequences. His burial at sea was unwarranted. The action, if unchallenged, would sanctify the right assumed by the U.S. to dispense justice as it pleases. If bin Laden could be killed without trial as retaliation for 911, by the same logic, the U.S. generals who led the gulf wars, the war in Vietnam and the war against Afghanistan can be eliminated by the enemy without trial. Let us not forget that if it is Pakistan today, it could be India tomorrow. The U.S. was responsible for making bin Laden what he was, though it routed all help to him through Pakistan in the 1980s. In course of time, he started exploiting the U.S. game plan and became hostile. Washington continues to pursue the same game plan. It has never wished any good for the world. Look at the double game it is playing with other countries especially with India and Pakistan. Pakistan Prime Minister has blamed the failure of world intelligence for the inability to locate Laden. This is unwarranted. The slain al-Qaeda leader was found in a safe house in his own country. The ultimate intelligence failure was on the part of Pakistan, whose role in the so-called war against terror stands exposed. The U.S. should think twice before releasing more financial aid to Pakistan. Bin Laden killing in a house so close to Pakistan's capital has once again exposed its dual stand on terrorism. India should realise that engaging Islamabad will not pay. Just a month ago, it said bilateral talks would resume just because the two countries met in the semi final of the cricket World Cup. Politics and sports should not be mixed. Pakistan can never be trusted, as Americans have just discovered. The comment by CIA Director involving Pakistan might have jeopardised the operation to eliminate bin Laden - clearly portrays America's mistrust of Pakistan. It was shocking to know how the most wanted terrorist was hiding in plain sight under Pakistan's nose. Senior politicians in the U.S. have every right to question Islamabad and its intelligence agency. In the interest of safety, the world should be much more vigilant and careful in dealing with Pakistan. Although it is true that some sections in Pakistan have been supporting fundamentalists, it may not be wise to use this fact to harass the people of Pakistan at this moment. They have been at the receiving end for quite some time now and are caught between a series of terrorist attacks on their soil and the U.S. drone attacks. The terror outfits have so far succeeded in capitalising the poverty and unemployment among the youth in the name of Islam. It is time the media created awareness among the people rather than adding insult to injury. Everyone is showering praise on US President for getting Laden, even though the President's contribution to containing terror has been minimal. It was George Bush who taught Laden's men a stiff lesson by driving them out of Afghanistan, into the wilderness. He made the U.S. impregnable by instilling mortal fear in the cowardly hearts of terrorists. He did not bother about his image. He stood for the restoration of American prestige and power. But for the resounding retaliatory U.S. strikes against the al-Qaeda under his leadership, there would have been many more large-scale attacks on American soil, only God knows as in God the USA trusts (please see the US currency note and the usual slogan of every US lawmaker)! The writer can be reached at E-mail: gopalsengupta@aol.com
Like many, I wonder why bin Laden was not captured alive, even when he was found unarmed during the operation. Did the U.S. want to finish him off when it said it wanted to capture him alive or dead? US President's statement that "justice has been done" is unacceptable. Justice would have been done only if bin Laden had been produced before courts and punished under the law. The world is yet to know the whole truth about his death. The most important question is: why wasn't he taken alive? Is it because he might have walked free for lack of evidence if he were brought to trial? The pictures of the three men killed along with bin Laden make one wonder why the U.S. is not willing to publish the picture of his body. If his pictures are gruesome, so are the ones which have been made public. Was he shot beyond possible recognition? Or was the operation eyewash? Is his killing really something that calls for celebrations? The time is to reform radical religious education to root out extremism. Secondly, how genuine is the news that he is dead? On what basis did the international media publish the news when pictures of his body were not even shown to them? The U.S. action to eliminate bin Laden is fraught with dangerous consequences. His burial at sea was unwarranted. The action, if unchallenged, would sanctify the right assumed by the U.S. to dispense justice as it pleases. If bin Laden could be killed without trial as retaliation for 911, by the same logic, the U.S. generals who led the gulf wars, the war in Vietnam and the war against Afghanistan can be eliminated by the enemy without trial. Let us not forget that if it is Pakistan today, it could be India tomorrow. The U.S. was responsible for making bin Laden what he was, though it routed all help to him through Pakistan in the 1980s. In course of time, he started exploiting the U.S. game plan and became hostile. Washington continues to pursue the same game plan. It has never wished any good for the world. Look at the double game it is playing with other countries especially with India and Pakistan. Pakistan Prime Minister has blamed the failure of world intelligence for the inability to locate Laden. This is unwarranted. The slain al-Qaeda leader was found in a safe house in his own country. The ultimate intelligence failure was on the part of Pakistan, whose role in the so-called war against terror stands exposed. The U.S. should think twice before releasing more financial aid to Pakistan. Bin Laden killing in a house so close to Pakistan's capital has once again exposed its dual stand on terrorism. India should realise that engaging Islamabad will not pay. Just a month ago, it said bilateral talks would resume just because the two countries met in the semi final of the cricket World Cup. Politics and sports should not be mixed. Pakistan can never be trusted, as Americans have just discovered. The comment by CIA Director involving Pakistan might have jeopardised the operation to eliminate bin Laden - clearly portrays America's mistrust of Pakistan. It was shocking to know how the most wanted terrorist was hiding in plain sight under Pakistan's nose. Senior politicians in the U.S. have every right to question Islamabad and its intelligence agency. In the interest of safety, the world should be much more vigilant and careful in dealing with Pakistan. Although it is true that some sections in Pakistan have been supporting fundamentalists, it may not be wise to use this fact to harass the people of Pakistan at this moment. They have been at the receiving end for quite some time now and are caught between a series of terrorist attacks on their soil and the U.S. drone attacks. The terror outfits have so far succeeded in capitalising the poverty and unemployment among the youth in the name of Islam. It is time the media created awareness among the people rather than adding insult to injury. Everyone is showering praise on US President for getting Laden, even though the President's contribution to containing terror has been minimal. It was George Bush who taught Laden's men a stiff lesson by driving them out of Afghanistan, into the wilderness. He made the U.S. impregnable by instilling mortal fear in the cowardly hearts of terrorists. He did not bother about his image. He stood for the restoration of American prestige and power. But for the resounding retaliatory U.S. strikes against the al-Qaeda under his leadership, there would have been many more large-scale attacks on American soil, only God knows as in God the USA trusts (please see the US currency note and the usual slogan of every US lawmaker)! The writer can be reached at E-mail: gopalsengupta@aol.com