Maghreb reacts to bin Laden death

ALGIERS, Algeria and TUNIS, Tunisia - As news of the death of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden reverberates across the globe, residents of the Maghreb express relief while governments prepare for possible retaliation by the terror group's regional affiliate.

In Algeria, the news hit as President Abdelaziz Bouteflika was chairing a cabinet meeting on political reforms. No official comment was made, but diplomats and security services made visible steps in Algiers to step up counter-terror efforts.

Maghreb is the name given to the Arab countries in northern Africa.

Algeria has been the scene of a number of terror strikes by al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) in recent years. The regional group's leader, Abdelmalek Droukdel, previously pledged his allegiance to bin Laden.

Foreign Minister Mourad Medelci was in Washington when the news of bin Laden's death broke. Medelci was there for meetings with several US officials, including Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and President Barack Obama's chief counter-terror advisor, John Brennan.

The Islamist Movement of Society for Peace (MSP) described Bin Laden's death as a victory.

"This announcement came as a surprise," party spokesman Mohamed Djemaa said.

Questions loom in the Sahel

"This is the natural outcome of several years of investigations," Djemaa said, adding that terrorists live very short lives. The MSP spokesman insisted that the battle against terrorism has not yet been won.

"We must remain vigilant and continue to fight this phenomenon," he asserted.

"Active and dormant terrorist groups and networks will certainly react and strike as soon as possible to show the world that al-Qaeda is still alive and well," said professor M'hand Berkouk, head of the Algerian Centre for Security and Strategic Research (CRSS).

Berkouk believes that although Bin Laden was a symbolic figurehead for terrorist networks, they operate independently of him. He also warned that al-Qaeda could alter its plans and open new centres of operations as a result.

"The Sahel would appear to be the new centre of international terrorism," he said, adding that Algeria has been right to call for more attention to be paid to terrorism in the Sahel.

Bin Laden's death could deal a fatal blow to al-Qaeda, according to Slimane Medjahed, a former advisor to the Algerian security services. In his view, the killing could spark an internal conflict within the organisation, especially in terms of who succeeds bin Laden.

"AQIM is the only organisation capable of avenging bin Laden's death," according to Ennahar Editor-in-Chief Anis Rahmani. He said that the group could kill some of the hostages it now controls.

A columnist writing for Liberté opined that "although his followers have killed more victims in Algeria than anywhere else in the world, bin Laden's demise is officially being treated as a non-event. Bin Laden attracted followers, so he continues to terrorise Arab and Muslim leaders."

A new chapter

Tunisia took no official stance towards the killing of bin Laden, but among citizens, reactions varied from relief to worry.

Ennahda leader Rachid Ghannouchi said al-Qaeda's approach had "no real reference to Islamic Jihad. It is not lawful, given the correct Islamic concept of Jihad. Al-Qaeda offered the wrong solution to the right problem."

"The answer offered by bin Laden and al-Qaeda is blind violence. The outcome was disastrous, however," Ghannouchi said. "Arab revolutions, however, ended al-Qaeda's approach even before bin Laden's death."

University professor Radia said she was relieved at the news.

"In the past, the regime used the pretext of combating terrorism to silence all free voices and suppress all opponents," Radia said. "At present, the world is witnessing a major change. Arab countries are revolting against despotism, one after the other. Then, al-Qaeda's leader gets killed. That is a positive step."

"This is a political victory for Obama. It is a feat that is going to weaken the Jihadist movement in general, which is a prime victory for America," political analyst Noureddine Ben Ticha said.

As for Obama's address where he stressed that he is against terrorism, not Islam, Ben Ticha said.

"This is an excellent stand that clears any confusion," he added. "This is now a positive step in parallel with Arab revolutions, so as to build a relation of friendship and forgiveness between America and Arab nations."

Morocco remains vigilant

Moroccan Communications Minister Khalid Naciri said on Tuesday (May 3rd) that while bin Laden's death did not directly concern Morocco, the country has not been spared by terrorism.

"We must therefore remain vigilant and take the security measures necessary to protect the country." The minister told journalists on Monday that Morocco had just been "ravaged" by terrorists, referring to the recent Marrakech bombing.

"The fact that the head of the confederation has been cut off does not mean that we are done with terrorism," Naciri said. He believes that the fight against terrorism must continue. He was hopeful that bin Laden's death would bring some stability to the world.

Bin Laden's death will not impact al-Qaeda's regional affiliates, according to Taj Eddine El Houceini, an international relations professor. These regional organisations, he said, decide, plan and execute their missions on their own. He warned of reprisals and also said that Bin Laden's death represents the end of the major symbol of al-Qaeda's existence.

Security posture enhanced in Nouakchott

In Mauritania, the news was met with stepped up security at foreign embassies. Security forces were also posted outside the homes of Western diplomats in Nouakchott. Dozens of Mauritanian soldiers were deployed with four wheel drive vehicles, carrying weapons and machine guns.

Commenting on the future of terrorism in the region after the killing of bin Laden, Ould Islem said, "I think that the Arab youth-led revolutions have pulled the rug out from under al-Qaeda that used to adopt the wishes of the peoples in rejecting the policies of their rulers. Now Arab nations are starting to overthrow their despotic regimes and lead the initiative themselves, away from al-Qaeda line of thinking."

The killing of bin Laden represented a positive step, since he distorted the image of Muslims in the world through his terrorist acts, Houssein Mohamed Oumar, one of the February 25th Youth, told Magharebia. Oumar expects the pace of terrorism to drop after the killing of bin Laden, which will improve the image of Muslims in the world.

Sid Ahmed Ould Tfeil, expert in the Salafi ideology, "Most of those who sympathise with the man do not truly understand his thinking or ideology. They just see in him a bold rebel."

Iselmou Ould Moustafa, head of Tahalil and expert on Salafist affairs, anticipated that AQIM would react, perhaps in the form of a strike against Western interests.

"Al-Qaeda is really beginning to fade away because of the Arab domestic revolutions which proved that violence alone does not create peaceful changes, peaceful slogans can, though," Ould Mustafa added.

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