Execution of the Sorcerer’s Apprentice

Published in Neues Deutschland
(Germany) on 3 May 2011
by Olaf Standke (link to originallink to original)
Translated from by Ron Argentati. Edited by Sam Carter.
The sorcerer’s apprentice has finally been killed. But no one should forget that Washington first armed Osama bin Laden to fight against the Soviet Union, its archenemy during the Cold War. But the puppet eventually became the puppeteer, the prince of terror who brought so much suffering to thousands in the United States and elsewhere. As much as his acts screamed out for revenge, a constitutional government shouldn’t resort to the extralegal measure of assassination that, provided it happened as reported, is exactly what took place in this nighttime action on foreign soil. Other mass murderers have been held responsible by courts of law.

As much as families and friends of those victims of 9/11 terror may now feel avenged, in the final analysis President Obama lowered himself to the same level as those for whom human life has no value when he issued his order to carry out the assassination. It’s highly possible that silencing Osama bin Laden forever was the best solution for the United States, sparing it many uncomfortable truths. Truths such as the fact that the “War on Terror” has already cost far more lives than just those lost to terrorist acts. Capturing bin Laden was once trumpeted as the justification for the United States’ invasion of Afghanistan. His liquidation 10 years later does nothing to change the reasons for terrorism in the first place.


Hinrichtung des Zauberlehrlings
von Olaf Standke
03.05.2011

Der Zauberlehrling ist endlich tot. Denn das sollte man nicht vergessen: Washington hatte diesen Osama bin Laden einst aufgerüstet für den Kampf gegen den sowjetischen Erzfeind in kalten Kriegszeiten. Doch aus der vermeintlichen Marionette wurde der Puppenspieler, der Terrorfürst, der so viel Leid über Tausende in den USA und anderswo brachte. So sehr seine Verantwortung dafür nach Rache schreien mag, in rechtsstaatlichen Verhältnissen sollte sich daraus kein Recht zur extralegalen Hinrichtung ableiten. Denn das war die Nachtaktion des Killerkommandos auf fremdem Territorium, wenn sie denn so abgelaufen ist, wie berichtet wurde. Da mussten sich schon ganz andere Massenmörder vor Richtern verantworten.

So groß die Genugtuung zumal bei Angehörigen von Terroropfern jetzt sein mag, letztlich hat sich Präsident Obama mit seinem Tötungsbefehl auf die Stufe jener begeben, denen ein Menschenleben nichts wert ist. Doch gut möglich, dass ein für immer stummer Bin Laden einfach die beste Lösung für die USA ist und ihr unangenehme Wahrheiten erspart. Zu denen gehört auch, dass der »Krieg gegen den Terror« längst ein Vielfaches aller Terrorismusopfer an Menschenleben gekostet hat. Bin Ladens Festnahme sollte einst die Afghanistan-Invasion legitimieren. An den Ursachen des Terrors wird seine Liquidierung eine Dekade später nichts ändern.

This post appeared on the front page as a direct link to the original article with the above link .

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