Quote by Christopher Hitchens
Remaining for a moment with the question of legality and illegality: United Nations Security Council Resolution 1368, unanimously passed, explicitly recognized the right of the United States to self-defense and further called upon all member states 'to bring to justice the perpetrators, organizers and sponsors of the terrorist attacks. It added that 'those responsible for aiding, supporting or harboring the perpetrators, organizers and sponsors of those acts will be held accountable.' In a speech the following month, the United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan publicly acknowledged the right of self-defense as a legitimate basis for military action. The SEAL unit dispatched by President Obama to Abbottabad was large enough to allow for the contingency of bin-Laden's capture and detention. The naïve statement that he was 'unarmed' when shot is only loosely compatible with the fact that he was housed in a military garrison town, had a loaded automatic weapon in the room with him, could well have been wearing a suicide vest, had stated repeatedly that he would never be taken alive, was the commander of one of the most violent organizations in history, and had declared himself at war with the United States. It perhaps says something that not even the most casuistic apologist for al-Qaeda has ever even attempted to justify any of its 'operations' in terms that could be covered by any known law, with the possible exception of some sanguinary verses of the Koran.
Summary
This quote provides a short explanation of the legality of the United States' military action in Abbottabad to capture or kill Osama bin Laden. Firstly, it mentions that United Nations Security Council Resolution 1368 recognized the US right to self-defense and called upon member states to bring to justice the perpetrators and their supporters. The United Nations Secretary General, Kofi Annan, also acknowledged self-defense as a legitimate basis for military action. Moreover, the quote argues against the naive belief that bin Laden was unarmed, highlighting his role as a violent commander, his access to weapons, and his declaration of war against the United States, suggesting that his capture posed a danger.
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