Bin Laden Is Dead. Is There Still a Threat of Terrorism?

The recent American operation is a triumph for Obama and a severe loss for the al-Qaida organization. However, the international welcome for the news of the killing of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden did not last for more than a few hours before the whole world was busy in taking accurate measures to cope with the response of his followers to the retaliatory killing of their leader.

The president of the United States, Barack Obama, began cautiously and realistically, announcing the killing of bin Laden to the American people while calling on people, rousing them with rhetoric by saying: “There’s no doubt that al-Qaida will continue to pursue attacks against us.”

Ten years ago, the United States, together with more than 30 countries, pursued bin Laden, and after painstaking intelligence efforts was able to finally reach him in a place that seemed surprising to many, which is also one of the most dangerous places in the world.

But what does the death of bin Laden mean for America, beyond the success of a commando raid, and how much of a loss will the absence of “the leader and inspiration” be to al-Qaida and its followers?

In the view of analysts and experts, the death of bin Laden was the most profound victory for Democrats and Barack Obama personally, as he campaigns for his second presidential term. There is no doubt that this death at the hands of American forces will satisfy the thirst for revenge of Americans who called bin Laden “Satan” so that his death will bring relief to the hearts of Americans.

However, this “execution” announced by the Americans took place after 10 years, in which time bin Laden managed to plant the seeds of ideas in all countries of the world, inspire hundreds of groups and cells, ideas and approaches and create “rules” that an individual could use to strike at will and at any place they chose. This “al-Qaida” arose in the face of a broad international coalition to combat terrorism. It does not seem that this alliance will end with the death of bin Laden, since they find themselves facing the need for constant vigilance to deal with the reprisals which may follow the death of the leader; in the longer term, they will need to watch Pakistan, given that bin Laden was found in the military center there.

The death of bin Laden comes amidst turmoil in the Arab and Islamic world, unfavorable both to America and al-Qaida, where attention is focused on popular revolts as an alternative approach to the violence adopted by the al-Qaida approach to change. This approach has now lost its luster after it attracted calls for “jihad” by thousands of frustrated and desperate young Arabs.

In the death of bin Laden, al-Qaida has lost their official in the arena, but his death in opposition to America makes him a symbol of adherence to his own principles and is the source of the war with America. In the light of the decline of “al-Qaida” in the Arab street, after the testing the effectiveness of popular approaches to change, they may try to take revenge for the killing of bin Laden by carrying out terrorist actions against Western interests and the U.S. specifically.

The controversy in the Arab public opinion about al-Qaida and bin Laden will continue in the state of division between those who see him as a terrorist, bringing calamities to the Arab and Muslim world, and those who consider him a hero and a martyr after his death. In both cases, the death of bin Laden will not close the book on al-Qaida.