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In Killing Bin Laden, U.S. Had the Law on Its Side
(Washington Post) Editorial - Did the U.S. comply with international strictures when it killed the al-Qaeda leader rather than capturing him and bringing him before a court of law? International law recognizes a country's inherent right to act in self-defense, and it makes no distinction between vindicating these rights through a drone strike or through a boots-on-the-ground operation. Much has been made of the disclosure that Osama bin Laden was unarmed, but this, too, is irrelevant in determining whether the operation was lawful. It is easy in the light of day to second-guess decisions made in the heat of war. It is particularly easy for those who refuse to acknowledge that war in the first place. The covert military operation that brought down the most wanted terrorist in the world appears to have been gutsy and well executed. It was also lawful.