Osama Buried At Sea
Already. That was quick. According to the Breaking News Twitter feed:
U.S. official tells NBC News that bin Laden has been buried at sea 'in accordance with Islamic law and tradition'
What do sharia and tradition say about burial? Well, according to ABC News:
Under Islamic tradition, ABC's Zunaira Zaki reports, the body would be washed by Muslim men and buried as soon as possible, usually by the next prayer (Muslims pray five times a day), although there may be delays under certain circumstances (for autopsies, for example). The body is usually buried in a simple white sheet -- whether buried in the ground, or at sea.
It will be interesting to see how people react to the way the U.S. handled this burial. I am under the impression that burial at sea for someone who didn't die at sea is not normal according to Muslim tradition. Does anyone know any other details to help us out?
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Jul '10
Re: Osama Buried At Sea
What bothers me is the -'in accordance with Islamic law and tradition'- part.
Why?
Are we saying he was a respectable Muslim? Are we saying he was Honorable?
Are we saying that Political Correctness will Trump All?
Mar '11
Re: Osama Buried At Sea
Uh oh. Doing this will spawn a thousand conspiracy theories, mainly ones that say he isn't really dead.
Dec '10
Re: Osama Buried At Sea
Agreed. They really need to release some photos and soon; I'm not into conspiracy but this is just weird.
Apr '11
Re: Osama Buried At Sea
The burial at sea is to prevent his tomb from becoming a shrine.
Jaydee_007:
Are we saying he was a respectable Muslim? Are we saying he was Honorable?
Are we saying that Political Correctness will Trump All? · May 2 at 12:39am
It seems to me that keeping in accordance with Muslim law is not to say that bin Laden was honorable, but that we are.
Mar '11
Re: Osama Buried At Sea
If we wanted to prevent his grave from being a shrine, then we should have wrapped the body in bacon, set it on fire, and planted it face down.
Feb '11
Re: Osama Buried At Sea
Did someone ask for a fatwa?
According to Ibn Qudamah's Mughni, the standard reference for Hanbalis, burial at sea is permitted, but only if a proper burial is impossible. (I assume the unspeakable malefactor was a Hanbali.)
If a person dies at sea, the deceased should be kept aboard for a day or two, in hopes of finding a place for burial. If no suitable place is found, or the corpse begins to decay, only then is burial at sea permitted.
After the burial rituals have been undertaken, the shrouded corpse is placed in the sea. There is a difference of opinion, though, as to whether the corpse should be weighted with a heavy object or put on something that floats, in hopes that it might reach shore and receive burial at the hands of Muslim strangers. For fear that infidels might mutilate the corpse or see it naked, it is generally thought better to sink it with weights.
I'd say there are thus at least three ways in which the U.S. military has broken the dictates of Islamic law.
Good on them!
Edited on May 2, 2011 at 1:31amOct '10
Re: Osama Buried At Sea
For all that Wikipedia doesn't bear this out, perhaps the Islamic law and tradition referenced is desecration. 'In accordance with law and tradition, he was hanged, drawn and quartered and his tarred head was stuck on a pike over the city gates...'
Of course, what has really happened is that he's not dead, and he is being taken to Gitmo for enhanced interrogation. Or cloning. Or a recess appointment to the NLRB.
Feb '11
Re: Osama Buried At Sea
There's a difference between:
-- multilating his corpse and hanging it naked from a bridge over the Potomac,
-- giving it a perfunctory internment, with no consideration to his own religious sentiments or to those of his friends and family.
Given the magnitude of the crimes committed, against Muslims and non-Muslims, I find nothing objectionable in the proverbial pine box and unmarked grave behind the prison -- with a quick prayer by the prison chaplain, if the deceased was a church-goin' man.
Further consideration would have had to be earned.
Besides, it's not as if militants will hate us any the less, and it may well be that moderates will be offended by the play for hearts and minds. Were I a Muslim, I'd be appalled that the U.S. even counted him among the faithful.
If burning a Qur'an is a capital crime, and causes a Muslim to become an infidel, surely burning to death 3,000 non-combatants does the same.
Edited on May 2, 2011 at 2:12amFeb '11
Re: Osama Buried At Sea
Can't we say "dumped into the sea?" Sounds way more appropriate.
Aug '10
Re: Osama Buried At Sea
Cremating him might have contributed in a small way to global warming, and we know he was concerned about that. I hope they dropped him in shark-infested waters(perhaps with a little fresh blood to attract their attention).
May '10
Re: Osama Buried At Sea
Hopefully that's Navy speak for " we tossed him off the fantail with the rest of the trash"....
Dec '10
Re: Osama Buried At Sea
This has got to be my favorite quote of the day.
Jun '10
Re: Osama Buried At Sea
I'm perturbed also by the "in accordance with Islamic law and tradition" part. All I can think of is how many families were deprived of the chance to bury their own loved ones in accordance with their religious traditions after 9-11.
But it is a great day!
Jul '10
Re: Osama Buried At Sea
I have been so befouled by politics that my second thought was will this help Obama? I hope I will be forgiven.
Nov '10
Re: Osama Buried At Sea
On several occasions, the Romans tossed the body of some dead leader into the river to prevent his grave from becoming a shrine. It was not a bad idea then and it is not a bad idea today.
Certainly we will have folks who claim that Bin Laden is not dead, but not even Obama is reckless enough to risk a still living Bin Laden popping up in some video discussing some specific future event in sufficient detail that it is clear that he was alive when that event happened.
It does appear that Pakistan has a lot to answer for, given that we found this guy living where he was living.
Dec '10
Re: Osama Buried At Sea
This one's for Rob Long...
Picture an enormous warehouse with a million crates stacked nearly to the ceiling. In the bottom center of the frame, a solitary figure appears pushing a cart with one squeaky wheel. On the cart is a mysterious box stamped "TOP SECRET".
It's the last shot of Raiders of the Lost Ark. Except in this case, rather than the contents being an instrument of God's holiness and wrath, the contents belong to Satan.
I say there would be nothing more fitting, in the Obama administration of Leviathan, to lose bin Laden's body in bureaucratic inefficiency. Except, perhaps, the addition of bacon as suggested above.
Jul '10
Re: Osama Buried At Sea
OK. That makes sense. He was killed outside of Islamabad in a retirement village and flown 1500 kays (932 miles) southwest just be buried at sea in a matter of hours. I understand there are no official released pictures or evidence that it was him (an autopsy report would show his kidney disease).Even the USA Today headline reads: "Osama Bin Laden Dead, Obama Says."
The question then for the would be conspiracy theorists is: Why would there be a conspiracy theory since the President's approval ratings are in the cellar, Iraq deaths are up, and he's just announced his plans for re-election?
For the record, I believe Osama has been dead for some time now.
For consultation on the Muslim burial procedures, all they had to do was ask Obama.
Edited on May 2, 2011 at 6:10amRe: Osama Buried At Sea
Michael Tee: OK. That makes sense. He was killed outside of Islamabad in a retirement village and flown 1500 kays (932 miles) southwest just be buried at sea in a matter of hours. I understand there are no released pictures or evidence that it was him (an autopsy report would show his kidney disease).Even the USA Today headline reads: "Osama Bin Laden Dead, Obama Says." ...
May 2 at 5:57am
Edited on May 02 at 05:58 am
Michael, do a search on Google Images. Warning: It's graphic.
May '10
Re: Osama Buried At Sea
I agree with Israel P. Dumped.
Aug '10
Re: Osama Buried At Sea
I hate to get political about this, but... if any random Republican was President instead of Obama, we wouldn't have been so quick to dump crucial evidence in slavish observation of Islamic law.