Community Leaders React: Osama bin Laden Dead

Editor's Note: This article will be updated throughout the day with reactions to the death of Osama Bin Laden. If you have a story to share, please e-mail noah@patch.com.

The news of Osama bin Laden's death spread quickly across North Jersey late Sunday and early Monday, as a state which lost more than 650 residents in the 9/11 attacks – 147 of them from Bergen County – cheered the terror mastermind’s slaying at the hands of American soldiers.

Reaction was swift and almost universal: Exultation that the United States' most elusive foe was dead, and dead as a result of U.S. action.

Of the nearly 150 Bergen County residents who died in the terrorist attacks, eight were from Teaneck.

Township Mayor Mohammed Hameeduddin said he was pleased that bin Laden had been killed, but said the nation must remain vigilant against terrorist threats.

"I'm happy that justice has been done," Hameeduddin said. "The president showed a lot of leadership in going after him for two years."

Hameeduddin, who is the town's first Muslim mayor, said bin Laden's ideology never took hold in most of the Muslim world. Al Qaeda offered only violence and destruction, and played no role in the recent uprisings seen across the Middle East, he said.

Councilman Elie Y. Katz, an emergency medical technician and life member of the Teaneck Volunteer Ambulance Corps, responded to Ground Zero to help fellow emergency workers.  Katz and other TVAC members were on standby at an emergency staging area days after the attacks.

“You feel justice has been done,” Katz said. “This day is a joyous day for every American.”

Jacqueline Kates, a former mayor and council member, recalled how Teaneck residents came together to help each other on Sept. 11, 2001.

“What I remember most was the immediate pulling together of our community and our country,” she said. “We were so together.”

Kates said she remembered reciting a poem at a special ceremony for residents who were killed in the attack. At that same moment, Kates said, military strikes were beginning against Al Qaeda in Afghanistan.

“For the last half a decade I certainly didn’t think he [bin Laden] would be found ever,” she said.

Although Kates said the togetherness felt in the days after the terrorist attacks had faded, she hoped people would remember the civic pride experienced then.

“Teaneck really rallied in those days,” she said. “I just hope that patriotic feelings are translated into more than just dancing. Do something concrete and make it a way of life.”

The devastation in Manhattan was impossible to ignore in Teaneck.  Smoke was visible from the boardroom at Holy Name Medical Center, where Kates now works as a community relations manager.

As New Jersey residents and local leaders were overwhelmingly pleased with the news of bin Laden's death, nothing could completely heal the wounds suffered on that clear September day.

“It doesn’t put the pieces back together,” Kates said.

Reaction Across Bergen County

"Obviously the terror attacks of 9/11 hit very close to home not only for the many lives in Wyckoff that were lost, but also for our very own Dana Hannon, who was formerly a Wyckoff fireman and was a new York city fireman who was lost in the attacks," Wyckoff Fire Chief Mike Rose said. "This news with Osama Bin Laden being killed … it’s some justice to combat the injustice that was done on that terrible day for the families who lost loved ones."

Hannon, one of 11 Wyckoff residents killed in the attacks, was a 29-year-old captain with the Wyckoff Fire Department as well as a firefighter with Engine Company 26 in the New York City Fire Department.

There was no immediate word about whether security into New York would be tightened Monday in the aftermath of bin Laden’s death. New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly told officers to be on alert despite not having information about any specific threat.

"I think Obama did a wonderful job in executing his plan to determine the whereabouts and location of Osama," said George Davis of Ridgewood. "I think that he will continue to serve our country in the most dignified manner that he possibly can."

Alex Randi, also of Ridgewood, expressed that he was pleased Bin Laden was killed.

"I love the fact that he was caught," he said.

Derreck Williams, who works at MacMurphy’s Bar in Ridgewood, said people were jovial when they saw the news on television sets.

"It was only a matter of time," Williams said. “It's just so weird that it took so long."

A stagehand in New York City on the production of Billy Elliot, Richard Fullum said he was at The Blarney Stone in Times Square when he heard the news.

"I did a doubletake, it was just unbelievable. It's really happening," he said. Fullum said The Blarney Stone "was going crazy." He said that his commute back to Ridgewood featured an overwhelming outpouring of emotion. People, he said, were cheering on the subways and at Secaucus Junction train station, crowding around the small bar.

"Knowing their tears," he said of victims’ families, "it just filled a void."

The president said that the U.S. had been tracking bin Laden for months and finally located him in a residence in Abbottabad, Pakistan.

"Today, at my direction, the United States launched a targeted operation. ... After a firefight, [soldiers] killed Osama bin Laden and took custody of his body," Obama said in an historic address to the nation.

“On nights like this one, we can say that justice has been done," the president added.

"I want to commend President Obama's Administration for its commitment and dedication to finally bringing Osama bin Laden to justice," Governor Christie said late Sunday. "As the former U.S. Attorney and now Governor of New Jersey, I speak for all the families of this state who have courageously endured the unspeakable and devastating consequences of terrorism.

"There is hardly a life that has gone untouched in New Jersey by the horrifying assault on American soil that took place on September 11th and today, after years of waiting, justice has finally been delivered."

Said US Senator Robert Menendez, “As a nation, we may all feel some measure of closure that justice was accomplished. ...  My thoughts and prayers, along with those of all New Jerseyans, are with those who lost family and friends on 9/11. Hopefully they can find some solace and a measure of closure today."

U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg said that the “civilized world” will have “great satisfaction” and called bin Laden “one of the worst killers in the history of man.”

“He was a ruthless terrorist responsible for a savage mission that killed thousands of innocent Americans and others around the world,” Lautenberg said. “Now we must be particularly diligent and let the message get out that we we’ll do whatever is necessary to stop this kind of madness.”

the full speech on the official White House YouTube channel.

The full text of President Obama's speech, as released by the White House, is below:

THE PRESIDENT:  Good evening.  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.

 It was nearly 10 years ago that a bright September day was darkened by the worst attack on the American people in our history.  The images of 9/11 are seared into our national memory -- hijacked planes cutting through a cloudless September sky; the Twin Towers collapsing to the ground; black smoke billowing up from the Pentagon; the wreckage of Flight 93 in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where the actions of heroic citizens saved even more heartbreak and destruction.

 And yet we know that the worst images are those that were unseen to the world.  The empty seat at the dinner table.  Children who were forced to grow up without their mother or their father.  Parents who would never know the feeling of their child’s embrace.  Nearly 3,000 citizens taken from us, leaving a gaping hole in our hearts.

 On September 11, 2001, in our time of grief, the American people came together.  We offered our neighbors a hand, and we offered the wounded our blood.  We reaffirmed our ties to each other, and our love of community and country.  On that day, no matter where we came from, what God we prayed to, or what race or ethnicity we were, we were united as one American family.

 We were also united in our resolve to protect our nation and to bring those who committed this vicious attack to justice.  We quickly learned that the 9/11 attacks were carried out by al Qaeda -- an organization headed by Osama bin Laden, which had openly declared war on the United States and was committed to killing innocents in our country and around the globe.  And so we went to war against al Qaeda to protect our citizens, our friends, and our allies.

 Over the last 10 years, thanks to the tireless and heroic work of our military and our counterterrorism professionals, we’ve made great strides in that effort.  We’ve disrupted terrorist attacks and strengthened our homeland defense.  In Afghanistan, we removed the Taliban government, which had given bin Laden and al Qaeda safe haven and support.  And around the globe, we worked with our friends and allies to capture or kill scores of al Qaeda terrorists, including several who were a part of the 9/11 plot.

 Yet Osama bin Laden avoided capture and escaped across the Afghan border into Pakistan.  Meanwhile, al Qaeda continued to operate from along that border and operate through its affiliates across the world.

 And so shortly after taking office, I directed Leon Panetta, the director of the CIA, to make the killing or capture of bin Laden the top priority of our war against al Qaeda, even as we continued our broader efforts to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat his network.

 Then, last August, after years of painstaking work by our intelligence community, I was briefed on a possible lead to bin Laden.  It was far from certain, and it took many months to run this thread to ground.  I met repeatedly with my national security team as we developed more information about the possibility that we had located bin Laden hiding within a compound deep inside of Pakistan.  And finally, last week, I determined that we had enough intelligence to take action, and authorized an operation to get Osama bin Laden and bring him to justice.

 Today, at my direction, the United States launched a targeted operation against that compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan.  A small team of Americans carried out the operation with extraordinary courage and capability.  No Americans were harmed.  They took care to avoid civilian casualties.  After a firefight, they killed Osama bin Laden and took custody of his body.

 For over two decades, bin Laden has been al Qaeda’s leader and symbol, and has continued to plot attacks against our country and our friends and allies.  The death of bin Laden marks the most significant achievement to date in our nation’s effort to defeat al Qaeda.

 Yet his death does not mark the end of our effort.  There’s no doubt that al Qaeda will continue to pursue attacks against us.  We must –- and we will -- remain vigilant at home and abroad.

 As we do, we must also reaffirm that the United States is not –- and never will be -– at war with Islam.  I’ve made clear, just as President Bush did shortly after 9/11, that our war is not against Islam.  Bin Laden was not a Muslim leader; he was a mass murderer of Muslims.  Indeed, al Qaeda has slaughtered scores of Muslims in many countries, including our own.  So his demise should be welcomed by all who believe in peace and human dignity.

 Over the years, I’ve repeatedly made clear that we would take action within Pakistan if we knew where bin Laden was.  That is what we’ve done.  But it’s important to note that our counterterrorism cooperation with Pakistan helped lead us to bin Laden and the compound where he was hiding.  Indeed, bin Laden had declared war against Pakistan as well, and ordered attacks against the Pakistani people.

 Tonight, I called President Zardari, and my team has also spoken with their Pakistani counterparts.  They agree that this is a good and historic day for both of our nations.  And going forward, it is essential that Pakistan continue to join us in the fight against al Qaeda and its affiliates.

 The American people did not choose this fight.  It came to our shores, and started with the senseless slaughter of our citizens.  After nearly 10 years of service, struggle, and sacrifice, we know well the costs of war.  These efforts weigh on me every time I, as Commander-in-Chief, have to sign a letter to a family that has lost a loved one, or look into the eyes of a service member who’s been gravely wounded.

 So Americans understand the costs of war.  Yet as a country, we will never tolerate our security being threatened, nor stand idly by when our people have been killed.  We will be relentless in defense of our citizens and our friends and allies.  We will be true to the values that make us who we are. And on nights like this one, we can say to those families who have lost loved ones to al Qaeda’s terror:  Justice has been done.

 Tonight, we give thanks to the countless intelligence and counterterrorism professionals who’ve worked tirelessly to achieve this outcome.  The American people do not see their work, nor know their names.  But tonight, they feel the satisfaction of their work and the result of their pursuit of justice.

 We give thanks for the men who carried out this operation, for they exemplify the professionalism, patriotism, and unparalleled courage of those who serve our country.  And they are part of a generation that has borne the heaviest share of the burden since that September day.

 Finally, let me say to the families who lost loved ones on 9/11 that we have never forgotten your loss, nor wavered in our commitment to see that we do whatever it takes to prevent another attack on our shores. 

 And tonight, let us think back to the sense of unity that prevailed on 9/11.  I know that it has, at times, frayed.  Yet today’s achievement is a testament to the greatness of our country and the determination of the American people. 

The cause of securing our country is not complete.  But tonight, we are once again reminded that America can do whatever we set our mind to.  That is the story of our history, whether it’s the pursuit of prosperity for our people, or the struggle for equality for all our citizens; our commitment to stand up for our values abroad, and our sacrifices to make the world a safer place. 

 Let us remember that we can do these things not just because of wealth or power, but because of who we are:  one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Thank you.  May God bless you.  And may God bless the United States of America.

                        END               11:44 P.M. EDT