Islamic World Quiet as Bin Laden Age Closes
By BRIAN MURPHY
Associated PressDUBAI, United Arab Emirates — In life, Osama bin Laden was ingrained in the Muslim consciousness in countless ways: the lion of holy warriors, the untouchable nemesis of the West, the evil zealot who soiled their faith with blood and intolerance.
In death, however, the voices across the Islamic world are now relatively muted in sharp counterpoint to the rage and shame - or hero-worship - that he long inspired.
The pro-democracy uprisings across the Arab world suggest to many that al-Qaida’s clenched-fist ideology has little place for a new generation seeking Western-style political reforms and freedoms - even though al-Qaida offshoots still hold ground in places such as Yemen and Pakistan.
“Bin Laden died in Egypt before he was killed in Pakistan,” said Abdulkhaleq Abdullah, a professor of political science at Emirates University. “The young people who successfully challenged the status quo with peaceful means proved change the bin Laden way - the violent way, the jihad way - did not come.”
Any Arab or Muslim who believes that terrorism is destructive and harmful to Arabism and Islam, cannot but receive the news of the fate of Osama bin Laden with feelings of sympathy toward the family of thousands of victims who died in different areas of the world because of him or by his orders,” said a statement by Saad Hariri [Prime Minister Lebanon].
If this is true, we couldn’t hope for a better outcome.
