After Osama: what Londoners think

Abstract

Osama Bin Laden, the public face of Al Qaeda widely acknowledged as the mastermind behind the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United States, was killed by US special forces on 2 May. The announcement was greeted with scenes of jubilation in New York and Washington, but gave much of the rest of the world pause. Was the operation to kill him legal, let alone moral? Would it unleash a series of revenge attacks? The slow, often confused flow of information surrounding the US mission also prompted a more fundamental question: was Bin Laden really dead?

Over the 4th and 5th of May, Demos researchers and volunteers surveyed hundreds of London residents, asking them their views on the death of the history's most notorious terrorist. This unique research uncovered a reluctance to accept the information presented about Bin Laden's death, and concern over the justification and potential fallout of his killing.