Debate: Was Osama really killed in Abbottabad?

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YES

Yes, Osama bin Laden was killed during a raid that occurred on May 1, 2011 in Abottabad, Pakistan. One argument made in opposition is that there are no photos, so how can we prove he's dead? The same people who advance this talking point fail to show any real evidence that he is either alive somewhere, or died years ago.

One example is the claim that Benazir Bhutto told BBC in an interview that he was murdered in 2007. However, in an interview a day later, when asked where bin Laden is, she told CNN that General Musharraf knew where bin Laden was and was hiding him. She also spoke of bin Laden being alive to Greta Van Susteren in November of 2007 after the BBC interview, to NPR, and to the BBC again. I believe the explanation that there was an error in translation, or she simply misspoke, as Bhutto was actually referring to Khalid Sheikh Muhammad's murder of Daniel Pearl. Besides, if I was interviewing someone and they told me that they knew bin Laden was murdered, I certainly would ask follow-up questions or investigate further. You're also assuming that multiple media outlets across the world colluded together to "hide the truth."

Furthermore, if he is dead, where have the movies and recordings been coming from where he mentions current and ongoing events? Granted, he could have pre-recorded a message of his that was released on the 60th anniversary of Israel prior to his death, but in another, he mentions the election of Barack Obama. That assumes he was at least alive until 2007-2008. Additionally, these tapes have been verified as bin Laden, not only by the American government, but a variety of governments worldwide.

If he is still alive, where is he being held? What good does it do to keep him alive? Sure, you could get plenty of intelligence out of him, but there were stashes of computers and data found in his compound.

Now, I could understand and question if the United States threw a missile at his compound, reduced it to rubble and claimed he was dead. But, in saying that he's not dead, there's an implication that the US Navy Seals and the Obama administration are colluding to deceive the American public. Besides, there isn't any benefit, other than a temporary bump in the polls, that Obama could receive from lying about bin Laden. As of yet, he hasn't called for an immediate withdrawal from Afghanistan, nor has he declared the War on Terror over. The elections are still 18 months away, a lifetime in politics, and there is no major legislation that the administration was trying to pass that needed a bump in support that an operation like this would provide.

In a case like this, I believe that the burden of proof really resides on the deniers. The only news sources I could find that discuss whether or not he is dead mainly poke huge holes through the deniers' stories and dismiss them as a fringe movement. Yes, there have been citizens of Pakistan who claim he's not dead, as well as a statement released by his family. However, they are either asking for evidence he's dead, and they don't offer any proof that he isn't dead. If I asked 25 random people on the street what color the sky was, I'm sure at least one would say something besides blue, but I wouldn't use that as evidence that the sky is indeed not blue.

And it's not a liberal media conspiracy either, as conservative news sources, including most of the top conservative news sources listed on this site, have either dismissed the theories or have not provided any support. Additionally, many of the theories concerning bin Laden still being alive require way too many jumps in logic that just aren't backed up by any evidence whatsoever. The only "famous" person advocating these theories that I could find is Cindy Sheehan. Hell, even al Qaeda confirmed he's dead!

Finally, if you did get the pictures, would you be satisfied of his death? I think a vast majority would, but as with the birther movement, there will still be that teeny tiny percentage that will ignore any evidence that contradicts their theory. And if you got the DNA sample, what would you compare it to? Would you know how to analyze it? --MarkN85 15:11, 11 May 2011 (EDT)

NO

In my opinion Osama was not killed in Abbottabad. The governments refusal to puublish pictures of his corpse and the "burial at sea", which contradicts muslim funeral rites leave some very big question marks. The published videos also don't seem satisfactory to me. The fact that Osama coloured his beard is a bit too convenient to explain some Osama tapes, that are speculated to be fake.
I suspect that he was either killed long before Obama became president, or that he was not actually killed at all, but captured by Seal Team Six.--VPropp 13:18, 11 May 2011 (EDT)