The death of al-Qaida terrorist leader Osama bin Laden was greeted by Arab-Americans and Muslims worldwide, according to a locally-based expert on the Middle East.
Dr. Jabbar Al-Obaidi, coordinator of Middle East studies program at Bridgewater State University, said although there are enclaves of militants who support bin Laden, overall Muslims and Arabs are satisfied by the news.
“The Arab people, from my honest assessment, are pleased to put this guy to sleep and to put an end to his murderous trip,” said Al-Obaidi, a native of Iraq who now resides in Bridgewater. “He really harmed people, not only us in the United States, but the whole world, including the Muslims. People in different parts of the world feel the same because of his evil way of thinking. He was not a Muslim leader. He was an outlaw guy. He was a murderer. Therefore, people like that he was killed.”
Al-Obaidi said speaking as an Arab-American, he is glad bin Laden is gone.
“I can speak loudly on this,” Al-Obaidi said. “I don’t see how one can jufy not feeling proud of the action. I don’t see that. To me, in case of the people who I spoke with, they feel as Americans that this is something they were waiting for. I think everybody is very happy about this. They are Americans in the first place whether they are Muslim or Arab.”
Al-Obaidi said he has been constantly consuming Arabic media as the news of bin Laden’s death was reported.
Al-Obaidi said leaders of Arab countries released statements approving of the bin Laden killing, and most common people approved as well, while militants from Hamas in the Gaza region of Palestine decried it as an assassination of an Islamic holy warrior.
Al-Obaidi criticized some Arab media for an element of incitement that can be found in the way it has handled bin Laden’s death.
Al-Obaidi noted that the Egyptian newspaper Al-Ahram used “provocative”
language in describing the way the U.S. disposed of bin Laden’s body. President Barack Obama said the body was disposed of at sea in a manner that respected the Islamic tradition.
“They play with the language,” Al-Obaidi said. “They put their own spins. Instead of saying his body was buried at sea, they say his body was thrown in the water. I’m thinking to myself this is very provocative language. This is a very provocative approach. This is what comes from that part of the world. I’m interested in reading some of the op-eds, the media coverage that comes out in the following days.”
At Bridgewater State University, the campus was mostly quiet on Sunday night as news of bin Laden’s death broke out. However, around colleges in the Boston area there were scenes of celebration as students poured out onto the streets cheering and chanting “U.S.A.!”
