LITTLE ROCK — News of Osama bin Laden’s death at the hands of U.S. Navy SEALs in Pakistan gave rise to jubilant crowds in the streets of New York City and Washington, D.C., but unleashed more complex emotions among four Arkansas families who lost members in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks masterminded by al-Qaida’s chief architect.
Jewele Lyons, the mother of Nehamon Lyons IV , a Pine Bluff sailor who died when one of four planes hijacked by al-Qaida crashed into the Pentagon, said bin Laden’s death wouldn’t resurrect her son.
“[Bin Laden] needed to have been stopped. He did so much harm,” Lyons said Monday. “But it’s not going to bring anybody back.”
Lyons, who lives in Pine Bluff, said her son, who had planned to make a career in the military, had “died on duty.”
President Barack Obama announced Sunday night that a U.S. Navy SEAL team killed bin Laden in an assault on a compound in the Pakistani city of Abbottabad, ending a 10-year manhunt.
Across the state, in Fayetteville, Alyson Low was flipping channels when she saw an alert on CNN.
“I tend to be a news addict. I’ve been that way, for better or worse, since 9/11,” Low said.
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That day, her younger sister, Sara Low, a flight attendant on American Airlines Flight 11, died when her plane crashed into the World Trade Center’s north tower.
The news of bin Laden’s death was “very unnerving,” said Alyson Low. Briefly stunned, she then began to sob.
On Monday, she was still sorting out feelings of relief, satisfaction and sadness.
“It’s real mixed because it brings everything back,” Low said.
Sara Low’s father, Mike, said his daughter’s loss is felt every day.
“There is no sense of closure. That is such a mythical word,” he said.
Deena Burnett Bailey - whose husband Tom died when United Flight 93 crashed in a field in Pennsylvania after he and other passengers tried to take back control of the plane - was watching television at her Little Rock home Sunday when news of bin Laden’s death broke.
“I had to let it sink in. I felt happy, and then I felt guilty that I was happy,” she said Monday.
Earlier at breakfast Monday, Bailey told her three daughters about the death of the man who planned the attack that killed their father.
Twins Madison and Halley are now 15; Anna Clare, only a toddler when Tom Burnett died, is 13.
The family hadn’t talked about bin Laden or his role in the attacks for so long, and the girls had a lot of questions, Bailey said.
Anna Clare asked, “Mom, what are we supposed to say? We can’t say, ‘Praise the Lord, the man is dead,’ because that’s wrong.”
“I know, Anna, and we’re not expected to,” Bailey replied.
Bailey understands her daughters’ conflicting emotions but also feels that bin Laden’s death will bring some peace to her family.
“It brings a sense of closure I did not expect to have,” she said.
The family of Malissa White, a Bald Knob native who died in the World Trade Center attacks, didn’t have an immediate comment Monday.
Other Arkansans took a broader view of bin Laden’s death.
Retired Gen. Wesley Clark, an Arkansan and former supreme allied commander of NATO, said the operation demonstrated the superiority of the U.S. armed forces.
In addition to showcasing to the world the nation’s ability to extend its military into far corners of the world and complete delicate missions, Clark said, the operation could build international faith in the American political system and restore confidence in the dollar.
Clark said that whether Pakistani political or military leadership played a part in harboring bin Laden is “one of those great questions” that may never be answered.
“I always suspected the Pakistanis were playing a double game with us,” he said. “It's possible they were playing a triple game.”
A terrorism expert on the faculty at the University of Arkansas said the U.S. dealt a major blow to al-Qaida by killing bin Laden.
“This is an important event, one of the most important in many, many years in regard to counter terrorism efforts in the United States,” said Brent Smith, director of the university’s Terrorism Research Center.
“There’s no question that it changes things,” said Smith, a professor of sociology and criminal justice. “He didn’t just die, he was taken out in an operation. I don’t think we can understate what the importance of this is.”
Stephen M. Shepphard a University of Arkansas law professor, said from what he’s read and heard about the operation, bin Laden’s death was allowed under U.S. and international law.
“There’s no evidence that this was some sort of an assassination effort,” he said.
How the death will influence the nation’s efforts to combat terrorism is up in the air.
Little Rock Air Force Base in Jacksonville told its residents Sunday that the terrorism threat level had increased under order of the Department of Defense without explanation.
Bin Laden’s death had no impact on operations Monday at the base, where the 41st Airlift Squadron sent off its first wave of airmen and planes in a major rotation of troops to Kandahar, Afghanistan.
The state’s political leaders - current and former - also offered their perspectives on Osama’s death.
“Welcome to hell, bin Laden,” said former Gov. Mike Huckabee on his political action committee’s website. “Let us all hope that his demise will service notice to Islamic radicals the world over that the United States will be relentless in tracking down and terminating those who would inflict terror, mayhem and death on any of our citizens.”
Former President Bill Clinton congratulated Obama for bringing bin Laden “to justice.”
“This is a profoundly important moment not just for the families of those who lost their lives on 9/11 and in al-Qaida’s other attacks but for people all over the world who want to build a common future of peace, freedom, and cooperation for our children,” Clinton said in a statement.
Gov. Mike Beebe also issued a statement praising the military’s performance.
“This operation displays the unwavering determination of the United States in its pursuit of terrorists, and gives some measure of closure to the families of the 9/11 victims,” he said.
The state’s congressional delegation also weighed in with statements.
U.S. Sen. Mark Pryor, a Democrat, said the killing should “send a message to our enemies around the world.”
In a statement, his Republican colleague, Sen. John Boozman, called it a “great victory for the Global War on Terror.”
In the House, U.S. Rep. Mike Ross, the lone Democrat, thanked the military, intelligence agencies and Obama, but cautioned that “we must remain vigilant as we continue to keep America safe and secure.”
The state’s three GOP congressmen also praised the military action.
“We can all sleep more soundly knowing the leader of the al-Qaida can no longer do any harm,” said Rick Crawford in a statement.
Tim Griffin said bin Laden’s death was “an historic moment for all Americans.”
But it’s the tragic, still painful, more personal history for those who still cope with the loss of the people that bin Laden ripped away from them.
“It’s kind of hard this morning,” said Jewele Lyons. Information for this story was contributed by Amy Schlesing, Alex Daniels and Chris Branam of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and Jennifer Godwin of Arkansas Online.