A son of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden has criticized the arbitrary killing of his father by US forces, saying he deserved to be tried in a court of law.
"Why an unarmed man was not arrested and tried in a court of law so that truth is revealed to the people of the world?" said Omar bin Laden, in a statement given to the New York Times.
Osama bin Laden's fourth son, who has repeatedly distanced himself from his father, said in the statement that in the absence of a body or photographic evidence, the family has not been actually convinced that Osama is dead.
The family argued that bin Laden's killing was against international law and that figures such as executed Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and former Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic had been given the chance to stand trial.
"We maintain that arbitrary killing is not a solution to political problems and crime's adjudication as justice must be seen to be done."
The family said they were demanding an enquiry into why bin Laden was "summarily executed without a court of law" and demanded the release of his three wives and several children, who are believed to be in Pakistani custody.
The statement also said the US decision to bury bin Laden's corpse at sea had deprived the family of performing religious rites.
US President Barack Obama claimed that Osama bin Laden was killed by US forces on May 1 in a hiding compound in Pakistan, resisting while unarmed.
Obama added that the military mission was conducted without the knowledge of Pakistani authorities due to US mistrust of their purported South Asian ally.
A US official later announced that bin Laden's body was abruptly buried at sea, falsely boasting that his hasty burial was in accordance with the Islamic law, requiring burial within 24 hours of death.
However, burial at sea is not an Islamic practice and Islam does not have a decree on a burial timeframe.
US officials also claimed their decision of the sea burial was made because no country would accept his remains, without elaborating on which countries were actually contacted on the matter.
Analysts, however, have raised serious questions as to why US officials did not allow for the application of a DNA test to officially confirm the identity of the corpse before the quick sea burial.
What a bs artist.
