Osama Bin Laden's Death

The morning of September 11, 2001 was an important day that changed international relations. On that day many countries and organizations were reminded that the fight against terrorism is an issue of maximum importance. There were a series of terrorist attacks carried out by members of Al Qaeda, who hijacked airplanes in order to destroy several important buildings that included the World Trade Center, and that ended up taking the life of around three thousand people. The government later learned that the man behind these attacks was Al Qaeda founder Osama Bin Laden.

The United States started a manhunt to catch Bin Laden, who remained the most wanted criminal in America for a decade until the Central Intelligence Agency, with the help of Pakistani informants, found him hiding in a building at plain sight in Pakistan. Thus, the commander in chief, Barack Obama, conducted an operation that required the Navy Seals to break into the building and capture the terrorist. This operation resulted in the recent death of Bin Laden on May 1st, 2011.

The Security Council's current president, ambassador Gerard Araud, said that the Security Council of the United Nations "welcomes the news on May 1, 2011, that Osama bin Laden will never again be able to perpetrate ... acts of terrorism, and reaffirms that terrorism cannot and should not be associated with any religion, nationality, civilization or group". Gerard Araud's reaction is important to international relations because he sends the important message that terrorism should be fought simply because of its violent and inhumane nature, and by nothing else; that way counterterrorism will be more accepted by more people.

Recently, Pakistan's military spy agency arrested five of the Pakistani informants who were collaborating with the Central Intelligence Agency. This shows the opposing views and therefore, the bad relationship between the United States and Pakistan. The Obama administration cannot understand how is it that Pakistan does not want to collaborate in the fight against terrorism, and this builds up tension between both states.

But is the assassination of Osama Bin Laden a good or a bad thing? Many argue that the death of the founder and leader of Al Qaeda will fuel the anger of its members and give him the title of a martyr, and that his death only means his successor will take power and continue what Bin Laden could not. Others argue that Bin Laden's death means a big step taken by counterterrorism. That it will debilitate Al Qaeda and terrorism in general, and that it sends a message to other terrorists.

One thing is for sure, the stress caused by terrorism does not end with the assassination of one of its biggest figure. On the contrary, many states recognize that vengeance from Al Qaeda might occur at any moment, and they are already strengthening the security of their embassies and troops, and are asking their citizens to remain calm in the celebration. The president from Spain, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, already had a reunion with the ministers of defense to discuss prevention methods. Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba, the vice-president of Spain, recognized that "the next weeks and months might be delicate".