“[His hands] were dipped in the blood of thousands and thousands of children, youths and elders of Afghanistan.”
- Hamid Karzai , Afghanistan president
“Personally, I am very much relieved by the news that justice has been done to such a mastermind of international terrorism. I would like to commend the work and the determined and principled commitment of many people in the world who have been struggling to eradicate international terrorism. The United Nations condemns in the strongest possible terms ... terrorism in all its forms, regardless of its purpose and wherever it is committed. The death of Osama bin Laden ... is a watershed moment in our common global fight against terrorism.”
- U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
“Let me make it very clear that we will avenge the martyrdom of Osama bin Laden, and we will do it by carrying out attacks in Pakistan and America. We will teach them an exemplary lesson.”
- Taliban spokesman Ahsanullah Ahsan
“This is the fate that evil killers deserve.”
- Outgoing Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri
“The world’s most wanted international terrorist is no more, but the death of bin Laden does not represent the demise of al-Qaida affiliates and those inspired by al-Qaida, who have and will continue to engage in terrorist attacks.”
- Ronald Noble, the head of the international police agency Interpol
“He was like a hero in the Muslim world. His struggle was always against non-Muslims and infidels, and against superpowers.”
- Sayed Jalal, a rickshaw driver in the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad
“This is a day of great honor to the survivors and victims of terrorism in the world ... a day to remember those whose lives were changed forever. A day of great relief to us victims and survivors, to see that bin Laden has been killed.”
- Douglas Sidialo of Kenya, who lost his eyesight in the 1998 bombing of the U.S. Embassy
“[Bin Laden’s death is] a resounding victory for justice, for freedom and for the shared values of all democratic countries that fight shoulder to shoulder against terror.”
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
“I don’t gain any satisfaction in his death. Nothing will bring Josh back to me.”
- Brian Deegan of Adelaide, Australia, whose 21-year-old son Josh died in al-Qaida linked bombings in Bali in 2002
“My heart is broken. In the past, we heard a lot of rumors about his death, but if he did die, it is a disaster and a black day.”
- Mohebullah, a Taliban fighter-turned-farmer in eastern Afghanistan
“Osama bin Laden has been responsible for preaching hatred and using terrorism to kill innocent people around the world, and it would have been more suitable for him to be captured alive and put on trial in an international court.” Mohammed Shafiq, head of the Ramadhan Foundation, a Muslim educational group in Britain
“[A] great result in the fight against evil.”
- Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi
“Had we known it, we would have done it ourselves. The Americans knew it, and they carried out the operation themselves and they killed Osama bin Laden and then later our president of Pakistan was informed that the operation was successful, and that’s it.”
- Wajid Shamsul Hasan, Pakistan’s high commissioner to Britain
From news services
