Osama bin Laden dead but conspiracy theories still alive

Source : http://www.examiner.com/strange-mysterious-facts-in-national/osama-bin-laden-dead-but-conspiracy-lingers#ixzz1LCdJiQu2

Can US Offer Final Proof Of Osama's Death? The announcement that 9/11 mastermind and international terrorist Osama bin Laden was killed by U.S. intelligence forces in a mansion outside Islamabad, Pakistan, has ignited both the world's media and its conspiracy theorists. Even as crowds gathered outside the White House and at Ground Zero to celebrate and remember lost loved ones, conspiracy-minded theorists were busy speculating in online forums as to the true nature of this announcement and the circumstances surrounding it. Many of the commentators simply don't buy the story - because they believe bin Laden was already dead. He was killed by coalition forces in the Battle of Tora Bora in 2001. Or he succumbed to kidney failure or diabetes or lung disease or Addison's disease or Marfan syndrome or perhaps even asthma. The idea that bin Laden was long dead was not the sole domain of conspiracy researchers. Many government officials agreed with them as well. Former CIA case officer Robert Baer said of bin Laden in 2008, "Of course he's dead." FBI counterterrorism chief Dale Watson thought he was "probably" dead. Former U.S. foreign intelligence officer and Boston University professor Angelo M. Codevilla went even further: "All the evidence suggests Elvis Presley is more alive today than Osama bin Laden." Professor David Ray Griffin, formerly of California's Claremont School of Theology, agreed with him and wrote a book in 2010 that claimed bin Laden died of kidney-related issues in 2001 while living in the Tora Bora mountains of Afghanistan. Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, herself assassinated in 2007, believed that bin Laden had been "murdered" by fellow terrorist Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh. Many of those who believe that bin Laden has been dead for years also claim that U.S. intelligence forces have faked various recordings and videos to keep the threat alive to justify foreign adventures such as Iraq and stoke the fears of a country rapidly losing enthusiasm for a war in Afghanistan that is moving into its second decade. Many conspiracy theorists held the opposite view - that bin Laden was alive and well and living in a variety of locations, chiefly Pakistan or Iran. And, again, several officials held similar views. 9/11 Commission member John Lehman is quoted back in 2004 as believing that bin Laden was alive and living in Northern Pakistan and that the Pentagon knew exactly where he was. Or course, statements like this added and fuel to the fire for those who believe that 9/11 was an inside job conducted in coordination with members of the Bush administration. Bin Laden's security and retirement home in Pakistan were simply payments for his efforts. Bin Laden’s identity has supposedly been confirmed by DNA testing against the DNA of his sister but it’s doubtful that those who believed him to be dead for many years will be swayed by that evidence. Certain wags have already joked that bin Laden’s body has been merely “thawed out” after years in cold storage. The fact that the death announcement came eight years to the day from former-President George W. Bush’s “Mission Accomplished” speech is seen as the administration tacitly winking at those in the know. Many are already demanding to see the long-form death certificate. The date, May 1, is also a day loaded with political and occult significance. May 1st is known around the world as International Worker’s Day and is celebrated widely. By releasing the news on May Day, President Obama has forced his unwitting political opponents to celebrate the same holiday as socialists, communists, and anarchists. Pretty sneaky, Mr. President May 1 is also Beltane to the Celts and Walpurgis Night to Germanic peoples, both significant holidays on the pagan and Satanic calendars. Beltane has been described as a “festival of optimism” closely linked to fertility rituals (it is spring, after all) and the burning of bonfires in rituals of purification. Walpurgis Night is also associated with bonfires and dancing. May 1st, 1776, is also the day Adam Weishaupt founded the Illuminati in Ingolstadt, Bavaria. But that's probably just a coincidence. The circumstances surrounding Osama bin Laden's reported death raise urgent questions over how the US is so sure it got its man. US personnel have so far said they identified him by facial recognition, but have declined to say whether they used DNA analysis. Reports have also suggested that Saudi Arabia was asked to take Bin Laden's body - but refused to do so. The fact his body was buried at sea has so far only added to the speculation, although as a Muslim, he had to be laid to rest as quickly as possible. Under Islamic law, people can only be buried at sea if they died there, or if there is a risk their body will be exhumed or dug up if buried in the ground. The release of a photograph purporting to show Bin Laden's corpse - which was later confirmed to be a fake - added to the confusion. Journalists have not yet had the opportunity to ask more than a few questions of the Obama administration about details of Bin Laden's death. A former British ambassador to the US, Sir Christopher Meyer, told Sky News: "I imagine we will see proof. "I can't concede the US president would go out to make a statement to the world that Bin Laden is dead without being able to produce evidence that he is dead. "I think we will see some evidence - DNA or photographic - to prove there is not still some phantom Osama bin Laden riding the Tora Bora mountains." The announcement is not the first time the world has heard of Bin Laden's death. Claims that the US and Britain kept up a pretence he was alive in order to continue their war on terror have been dismissed as conspiracy theories. Can US Offer Final Proof Of Osama's Death? The circumstances surrounding Osama bin Laden's reported death raise urgent questions over how the US is so sure it got its man. US personnel have so far said they identified him by facial recognition, but have declined to say whether they used DNA analysis. Reports have also suggested that Saudi Arabia was asked to take Bin Laden's body - but refused to do so. The fact his body was buried at sea has so far only added to the speculation, although as a Muslim, he had to be laid to rest as quickly as possible. Under Islamic law, people can only be buried at sea if they died there, or if there is a risk their body will be exhumed or dug up if buried in the ground. The release of a photograph purporting to show Bin Laden's corpse - which was later confirmed to be a fake - added to the confusion. Journalists have not yet had the opportunity to ask more than a few questions of the Obama administration about details of Bin Laden's death. A former British ambassador to the US, Sir Christopher Meyer, told Sky News: "I imagine we will see proof. "I can't concede the US president would go out to make a statement to the world that Bin Laden is dead without being able to produce evidence that he is dead. "I think we will see some evidence - DNA or photographic - to prove there is not still some phantom Osama bin Laden riding the Tora Bora mountains." The announcement is not the first time the world has heard of Bin Laden's death. Claims that the US and Britain kept up a pretence he was alive in order to continue their war on terror have been dismissed as conspiracy theories. It has been suggested that Bin Laden died nearly 10 years ago during the battle for Tora Bora in Afghanistan, either from a US bomb or from kidney disease. And as for his audio and video statements, their authenticity has continually been questioned. One of his video statements, released just days before the October 2004 US presidential election, was said to have been crucial in helping George Bush secure a second term in office. But his statement from December 2001, when he was seen to confess to the 9/11 attacks, has attracted the most attention. Bin Laden had insisted numerous times, through the Arab press and in video statements, that he had no involvement with the atrocities. His sudden confession was picked up on by doubters. Additionally, his appearance in the December 2001 video was markedly different. He sported a black beard, not his usual grey one, his pale skin had become darker and he had a different shaped nose. He also looked in good health - a contrast to his earlier gaunt appearance - and critics have pointed to the fact he is seen writing a note with his right hand, although he was left-handed. In total, Bin Laden is thought to have released around 40 statements since 9/11, many of them with clear references to events at that time. When Uday and Qusay Hussein - the sons of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein - were killed in a firefight with US troops, authorities relied on photographs of their bodies to convince people they were dead. And when Saddam himself was executed, video footage of his death and subsequent photographs seemed to give final proof of his death. Submit News/Videos/Links | Discuss article | Article Link | More unsolved mysteries on Unexplained Mysteries