292 lines
8.7 KiB
Plaintext
Executable File
292 lines
8.7 KiB
Plaintext
Executable File
news
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worldnews
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al-qaeda
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# Rowan Williams in row over Osama bin Laden killing
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## The Archbishop of Canterbury is at the centre of a row after he criticised
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the United States for shooting dead the unarmed Osama bin Laden.
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TelegraphPlayer-8495583
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[Link to this video][1]
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By Tim Ross, Steven Swinford, James Kirkup and Caroline Gammell 10:00PM BST 05
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May 2011
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[Comments][2]
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Dr Rowan Williams, spiritual head of the 80-million strong worldwide Anglican
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Communion, criticised the White House for repeatedly changing its account of
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the raid on the [**al-Qaeda**][3] leader's compound in [**Pakistan**][4].
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Killing bin Laden when he was not carrying a weapon meant that justice could
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not be "seen to be done", the Archbishop suggested.
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But lawyers and senior figures from politics and the military said Dr Williams
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was not living in "the real world" while relatives of 9/11 victims expressed
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outrage at his remarks.
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A senior Government source described the Archbishop's comments as "very
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unwise", adding: "One has to give some thought for all the unarmed people that
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bin Laden killed. This was a very silly thing to say."
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Dr Williams's intervention represents the most outspoken statement so far by a
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mainstream religious leader since the US Navy Seals team stormed bin Laden's
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hideout and killed the world's most wanted man on Monday.
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## Related Articles
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* [Fight against al-Qaeda not over, Clinton warns][5]
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05 May 2011
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* [Clinton: raid 'intense'][6]
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05 May 2011
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* [Sarah Palin accuses Obama of 'pussy-footing around'][7]
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05 May 2011
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* [Pakistan order reduction in US troops to 'minimum essential'][8]
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05 May 2011
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* [Spanish PM: any democrat would have preferred Bin Laden trial][9]
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05 May 2011
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* [Met chief: attack by terrorists is highly likely][10]
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05 May 2011
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The row came during another day of developments in which the US was seen to
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change its account of the controversial special forces raid yet again.
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:: US officials disclosed that just one of the five men killed in the
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operation was armed, contradicting the White House's earlier picture of a
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continuous 40-minute shoot-out between special forces and terrorists.
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:: Relations between the US and Pakistan worsened as Pakistani military chiefs
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demanded that America reduce its troop presence in the country to a "minimum".
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After days of questions in Washington over how bin Laden could find shelter in
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the town of Abbottabad, army chief of staff General Ashfaq Kayani threatened
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to "review" cooperation with the US in the event of "any similar action
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"violating the sovereignty" of Pakistan.
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:: President Barack Obama visited Ground Zero in New York, to meet relatives
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of those who died in the World Trade Centre attacks and lay a wreath. The
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President said bin Laden's death proved that America would never fail to bring
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terrorists to "justice".
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"When we say we will never forget, we mean what we say," Mr Obama said. "We
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were going to make sure that the perpetrators of that horrible act - that they
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received justice."
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However, during a press conference at Lambeth Palace, Dr Williams questioned
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whether "justice" had been demonstrated by the US action.
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"The killing of an unarmed man is always going to leave a very uncomfortable
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feeling because it doesn't look as if justice is seen to be done," he said.
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The White House's "different versions of events" during the past week "have
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not done a great deal to help", he said.
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"I don't know full details any more than anyone else does. But I do believe
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that in such circumstances when we are faced with someone who was manifestly a
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war criminal, in terms of the atrocities inflicted, it is important that
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justice is seen to be observed."
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Elsewhere, the religious reaction to bin Laden's death has been relatively
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muted. The Vatican observed that Christians "do not rejoice" over any death,
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in a reference to the scenes of jubilation as the news of bin Laden's fate
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reached Washington and New York on Monday.
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The Spanish Prime Minister, Jose Luis Rodriquez Zapatero, added his voice to
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the concerns of human rights campaigners over the killing of bin Laden before
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he had been tried in court. "Any democrat would have preferred to see him
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stand trial," he said. Amnesty International also said Dr Williams was "right"
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to raise concerns about how bin Laden was killed.
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However, senior MPs and government figures joined military leaders in
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attacking Dr Williams's comments.
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A coalition minister said the Archbishop was being naive: "It's quite easy to
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talk about due process and justice from the warmth and safety of a palace in
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London, but out in the real world, things are rather more complicated."
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Lord Goldsmith, the former attorney general, said that Dr Williams should have
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"stayed out of it".
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He said: "As a lawyer I always believe it is safer to wait to see what the
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evidence is, to keep ones eyes open until that moment and then make a
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judgement.
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"It is important that even after all this time that someone who perpetrated
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these terrible crimes is seen not to be able to continue to hide and escape
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from it."
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The former head of the British Army, General Lord Dannatt, who is a practising
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Anglican, rejected Dr Williams's argument.
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"In the highly charged atmosphere widening the debate is unhelpful. In the
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specifics of bin Laden in those circumstances the actions of the troops were
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perfectly justifiable."
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Tobias Ellwood MP, an aide to the Defence Secretary, Liam Fox, said that
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arresting and trying bin Laden would have been an unacceptable risk. Mr
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Ellwood's brother was killed in an al-Qaeda bombing in Bali.
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He said: "This was the central al-Qaeda control centre - it was a legitimate
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target, and knocking on the door with an arrest warrant was not an option.
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"Osama bin Laden was responsible for many, many deaths around the world, and I
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do not believe it was worth risking another life to attempt to take him
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alive."
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Pauline Berkeley, whose son Graham was killed when his United Airlines flight
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175 was hijacked and flown into the North Tower, was furious with the
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Archbishop's comments. "I think that is absolutely awful from a man of God,"
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she said.
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"He would feel justice had been done if it was his daughter, or his son that
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had been killed - or his wife."
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Dr Williams has a record of attracting criticism after commenting on sensitive
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political issues. In 2008 he provoked consternation when he claimed that it
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seemed "inevitable" that elements of Islamic sharia law, such as divorce
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proceedings, would be incorporated into British law.
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A year later, he attacked the Labour government over the Iraq War, saying
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politicians had failed to "measure the price" of the conflict.
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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/al-qaeda/8496260/Rowan-Williams-in-
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row-over-Osama-bin-Laden-killing.html
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Telegraph
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## [Al-Qaeda][16]
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* ### [News »][17]
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* ### [World News »][18]
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* ### [Pakistan »][19]
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* ### [USA »][20]
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* ### [UK News »][21]
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In news
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[![Mullah Omar, head of the Taliban][22] ][23]
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### [Taliban leader reported killed][23]
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[![Pakistan naval base attack][24] ][25]
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### [Taliban attack Pakistan naval base][25]
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[![The killing of Osama bin Laden could be used as legal justification for the
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death of Muammar Gaddafi, MPs have been told. ][26] ][27]
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### [Bin Laden's posthumous message][27]
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[![Osama bin Laden dead: Taliban suicide bombers kill 80 in Pakistan revenge
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attack][28] ][29]
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### [Witnesses describe bomb aftermath][29]
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[![60 Minutes - CBS news][30] ][31]
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### [Obama: Pakistan may have known bin Laden whereabouts][31]
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[X][11] Share & bookmark
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Delicious Facebook Google Messenger Reddit Twitter
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Digg Fark LinkedIn Google Buzz StumbleUpon Y! Buzz
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[What are these?][12]
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Share:
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* [ ][11]
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* [ ][13]
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* [ ][14]
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* [Tweet][15]
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* Advertisement
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![][32]
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