"Oh shit, it really is bin Laden."
These are the words that came out of the Navy SEAL's mouth before shooting Osama Bin Laden on that fateful day in May 2011. In a recent trip to the CIA, I was able to learn some of the true facts of the historical Abbottabad raid -- not the version "Zero Dark Thirty" shows or the cynical version told by Simon Hersh, but the real story as told by a case officer of the CIA that, along with many other analysts and operatives, worked tirelessly to gain enough intelligence to plan a mission to kill.
We all remember that day. I vividly remember Obama broadcasting from the East Room of the White House, "Good evening. Tonight, I can report to the American people and to the world that the United States has conducted an operation that killed Osama bin Laden, the leader of al-Qaeda, and a terrorist who's responsible for the murder of thousands of innocent men, women, and children."
In that moment, time stood still. It seemed as if the USA had finally overcome the events of the past 10 years -- from the falling of the World Trade Center on 9/11 to the decade-long war in the Middle East. Now here we are, five years after the raid that killed the leader of the 9/11 attacks. Everything has gone back to normal, and we ask ourselves, "Was it worth it?" Was launching two wars that killed thousands worth it? Was the raid that night worth it? Was a decade-long cat-and-mouse chase to end one man's life really worth it?
The impact that the death of Osama bin Laden had is extremely overstated. We are still at war. We are still seeing terrorist attacks daily. In fact, it may be easy to argue that his death had negative effects. Osama bin Laden was a charismatic leader to the cause of jihadism. The members of al Qaeda followed him and looked up to him. Though his death tore the core out of al Qaeda, in the long run, it's appearing that his death seemed more of a blow to the stomach that left them out of breath momentarily than anything. Rather than tearing apart the organization as we had hoped, we gave them a martyr for their cause. The death of their leader has caused the remaining members of al Qaeda to reassemble with a new passion.
It's hard to believe that any terrorist organization would not have a plan in place for when their leader is assassinated. It's even harder to believe that the world's leading terrorist organization, whose leader was the USA's Most Wanted Man, would not have a backup plan in place in case things went awry. Indeed, they did have a plan. Ayman al-Zawahiri took over al Qaeda soon after bin Laden's death. He was al Qaeda's "number two" during bin Laden's reign and the operational brains of the organization. Though he lacks the charisma and appeal that bin Laden had, which is a definite plus for the US as it probably has blocked new recruits from falling into the trap of the organization, he is still known to have extreme influence on the attacks the organization carries out. The rise of al-Zawahiri may have thwarted new recruits, but the remaining fighters would still have a leader and still have plans to execute. Those who were committed to violence yesterday will still be committed today. The death of bin Laden did not make jihadis, who are committed to serving Allah, not their leader, suddenly change their mind and think twice about the possible consequences of continuing to participate in terrorist activities. These are the people who wear suicide vests and hijack planes knowing they will die in the process. Did you really think killing their leader would scare them away?
Though killing bin Laden may not have stopped al Qaeda in its tracks as we had hoped, it did create momentum to oust the rest of the regime, further halting al Qaeda's attempts at retaliation for their leader's death. In the months after the death of bin Laden, the US was able to kill over half of the 20 leaders that made up bin Laden's entourage. Though the effects of this can't be immediately seen, it's important to think of the bigger picture. Ilyas Kashmiri, one of al Qaeda's top operational commanders and strategists -- killed. Atiyah Abd al-Rahman, al Qaeda's absolute top operational commander -- killed. Anwar al-Awlaki, the famous American-born AQAP (al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula) and propagandist -- killed. These are just a few of the leaders that were killed in the aftermath of bin Laden's death. If they hadn't been killed, the likeliness of a terrorist attack in retaliation to bin Laden's death would have been much higher. The operations of a terrorist organization are carefully planned and involve many people, much like intelligence operations in the US. By taking out many of the people who planned the attacks, not only on the World Trade Center, but other prominent attacks such as that on the USS Cole, we have weakened the organization's ability to plan elaborate attacks and carry them out. Though no one can be certain that attacks have been stopped due to their deaths, in all likelihood, they have been.
Whether bin Laden's death crippled al Qaeda or not, no one could have foreseen the break-off of ISIS from al Qaeda and their rise to being the leaders in terrorism. The death of bin Laden undeniably left the window open for a new regime to flourish. After his death, ISIS became the world's biggest threat. A new breed of terrorists, ISIS is headed by the man bin Laden elected to become his successor to al Qaeda had anything happened to him. Setting them apart though is al-Afri's decision to stay quiet. Osama bin Laden, while a private man, made public declarations and speeches. al-Afri does none of this -- he has yet to be seen and this should make us afraid. We know nothing of our biggest enemy. He perhaps could be the world's new bin Laden.
The negative effects of bin Laden's death seem endless. We are still at war. Terrorism is still running rampant in the world. Our relations with Pakistan have disintegrated due to the covert action taken to kill bin Laden. The aftermath seems to show the vulnerability of our military -- it has not the been the Army or even the Marines who have taken out terrorist targets. Despite these negative effects, bin Laden's death was something that can and should be celebrated. The successful raid on Abbottabad marked a symbolic victory for the United States. It provided closure to all those affected by the 9/11 attacks. It provided morale to the troops who were beginning to think they were fighting for nothing in a war that can't be won. More importantly, it reinvigorated the trust American's have in our government. After a decade of what seemed to be a failure by the intelligence community and our government officials, bin Laden's death was a much-needed success to assure Americans that our hard-earned money wasn't all going to waste.
Five years after his death, it is important to remember the trust and patriotism we felt that day. Though the world may once again be plagued by terrorism, which it always will be, we need to remember that hope we felt. There will always be a new enemy, but as the death of bin Laden showed, we will prevail. Even someone as powerful as bin Laden will not topple the United States. We, as citizens of this great country, need to once again find the faith that Osama bin Laden's death instilled in us -- terrorists will not and cannot win.
