By FRANCISCO E. JIMENEZ
Staff Writer
reporter@sbnewspaper.com
Osama bin Laden
“Tonight, I can report to the American people and to the world that the United States has conducted an operation that killed Osama bin Laden, the leader of al Qaeda, and a terrorist who’s responsible for the murder of thousands of innocent men, women, and children.”
Those words, arguably the most significant of President Barack Obama’s presidency, commenced a nine-minute speech Sunday evening confirming the death of public enemy number one, Osama bin Laden, mastermind of the September 11, 2011 attacks.
President Obama’s words echoed out of the East Room of the White House and into the ears of those watching on television in the United States and the world. The citizens of San Benito were no exception.
Many who heard the news of bin Laden’s death took to the streets and to the internet on social networks such as Facebook and Twitter to express how they felt about what transpired.
Among those most affected by the news of bin Laden’s death are those who have lost loved ones on 9/11 during the ensuing wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as those who served in said wars, such as 31-year-old San Benito native Jose Luis Meza, III, an Airman who completed a tour of duty in Iraq in 2005.
Meza had mixed feelings regarding bin Laden’s death.
“It’s a good thing, but it can be a bad thing. I don’t know how to interpret it,” said Meza. “I am happy that all of the people who died in the war and in the towers in New York got theirs back. Bin Laden finally paid the price and got what he was asking for.”
Meza was already enlisted in the Air Force when two commercial airplanes piloted by terrorists were flown into the World Trade Center towers.
“In a way I was hoping that (bin Laden) would be brought to justice through the courts, but on the same token, he got what he deserved in the end,” said Meza, who is currently stationed at Grand Forks Air Force Base in North Dakota.
Pl. 3 San Benito City Commissioner and Mayor Pr-tem Bill Elliott is someone else who felt a bit of closure in the death of bin Laden.
Elliott’’ son, Tom Elliot, was in Tower Two of the World Trade Center on that fateful day, an experience which caused Elliott and his wife Zurly to initially believe they had witnessed the death of their son as the second tower collapsed.
Fortunately, Tom was able to escape from the tower minutes before it collapsed. When asked how he felt when he heard the news of bin Laden’s death, Bill said, “My first thought was ‘justice at last for the man who tried to kill my son,’” said Bill. “It brings closure to all of the families who lost loved ones during the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, the crash in Pennsylvania, and also all the survivors and their families. It brings closure, at least, to this chapter.”
To see this story in print, pick up a copy of the May 4 edition of the San Benito News. Or view our E-Edition by clicking here.
Recent Comments