CONSPIRACIES RUN WILD OVER BIN LADEN'S DEATH

'Give us proof'
Refusal by the US to reveal death photos of Osama bin Laden is fuelling conspiracies on the fate of the terrorist.

Conspiracies run wild over bin Laden's death
Yahoo!7
May 4, 2011, 1:53 pm

Is Osama bin Laden really dead? That's what they conspiracy theorists are asking.

Sure to join the the great conspiracies such as the faked moon landing, just who shot JFK and that 9/11 was an inside job, the question of whether bin Laden really died in Abbottabad remains in some people's minds.

The decision by the US to bury bin Laden quickly after his death, and their current refusal to release photos of the dead terrorist have sparked a number of theories - both that bin Laden is still alive or died much earlier.

The US said disposing of bin Laden's body in the ocean was to observe Muslim burial rights and to deny supporters a place of worship. They also said they were reluctant to release the death photos so as not to incite any radicals in the Middle East.

But people on a number of social networking sites and blogs are demanding the release of a photo to confirm the terror leader's death.

This was further fueled by the Taliban claiming bin Laden was still alive on TV station Al Jazeera.

The skepticism was rife in the US, with many prominent figures questioning the death, the Telegraph in the UK reported.

Cindy Sheehan, who lost her son in Iraq in 2004, wrote on Facebook: "I am sorry, but if you believe the newest death of OBL, you're stupid. Just think to yourself - they paraded Saddam's dead sons around to prove they were dead - why do you suppose they hastily buried this version of OBL at sea?"

Even parents of victims of the 9/11 attack were not convinced bin Laden was actually dead.

"To me, that seems strange, that they disposed of it and no one [besides] whoever was right there knows what happened, if it's true or false, you know?" Stella Olender, whose daughter was killed in the September 11 attacks, said.

Others have said the US have had bin Laden's body for years, concocting fake tapes in recent times to continue to justify their involvement in the Middle East.

The conspiracy theorists claim the raid was an elaborate hoax by Obama's administration to boost flagging support for his government ahead of the 2012 US election.

A number of people, writing on the Tea party Nation website, have queried the timing of the announcement.

One conspiracy theorist said: "Don't you think Obama needs something to assure his re-election?"

A wild theory suggested that Obama used the timing of the announcement to disrupt the airing of Donald Trump's celebrity apprentice as a form of payback for the "birther' conspiracy.

Even in Abbotabad, people are not convinced that bin Laden was even living amongst them, let alone had been killed in a midnight raid.

"Nobody believes it. We've never seen any Arabs around here," said local Bashir Qureshi.

"They (the US) said they had thrown his body to the sea! This is wrong, he was not here."

Another, Shakil Ahmed, believed the US was going to use this as an excuse to withdraw from Afghanistan.

"The US wants to quit Afghanistan. They are saying Osama is dead so they can have an excuse. They have tried to defame the Pakistani army by cooking up this story," he said.

"If he is killed, why don't they show his body?"