The War on Terrorism Will Not End with bin Laden

Terrorist ringleader Osama bin Laden was killed by U.S. operatives.

The terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 killed around 3,000 people, including 24 Japanese. The U.S. decided that the terrorist act was conducted by al-Qaida, an international terrorist organization led by bin Laden, and began to put all of their efforts into pursuing the group.

It was believed that bin Laden had been in hiding along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. However, unexpectedly, his hideout was on the outskirts of Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad.

The death of this ringleader was a great success for the U.S.-led “war on terror.” President Obama said, “Justice has been done.” The Prime Minister of Japan, Naoto Kan, welcomed the news by saying that this is “significant progress in counter-terrorism measures.”

Yet, the war on terror doesn’t stop now because of this. There is a high chance of retaliatory terrorist attacks for the killing.

The international community, including the United States, more than ever before, must not lose their vigilance against terrorism. It is plain then that Japan will need to make plans to strengthen the security posture of the Japanese Self-Defense Force.

The U.S.’ tenacity in hunting down bin Laden’s whereabouts for almost 10 years was brought to fruition with bin Laden’s death. There was little wonder why, at the president’s announcement, a crowd of citizens gathered in front of the White House and shouted for joy.

Still, just as the president himself wrote, the war on terror will continue to go on.

The terrorist organization that believes in the ideas of bin Laden — namely, that it is the duty of Muslims to kill U.S. citizens — has spread from North Africa to Southeast Asia. There are even sympathizers springing up in the U.S. and Europe.

The death of bin Laden is being viewed as “martyrdom,” and there is even fear that it will increase followers.

In the Muslim world, there is deep-rooted hostility toward the U.S. for attacking Afghanistan and Iraq for the “war on terror.” However, there will not be a growth in anti-U.S. sentiments due to bin Laden’s death.

In Afghanistan, the Taliban’s movements are being closely watched because their anti-government forces are strongly influenced by bin Laden.

The U.S. has taken up the responsibility of bringing stability to Iraq and Afghanistan. This could increase confidence in the U.S.

In the Middle East and North Africa, the movements toward democracy are getting larger. The majority of the authoritarian leaders who have had to step down supported the clean-up efforts led by the U.S.

The international community will need to look deeply into what influence the death of bin Laden and this trend toward democracy will have for the future.