Pakistan to Charge Osama Bin Laden's Wives, Daughters

By Jeralyn, Section War on Terror
Posted on Mon Mar 26, 2012 at 08:31:00 AM EST
Tags: Bin Laden Wives, Hamza bin Laden (all tags)

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Pakistan has decided to charge three of Osama bin Laden's wives and two of his daughters with the crimes of illegally entering and residing in Pakistan. The penalty is five years in jail. I wonder if they get credit for the 11 months served to date under Pakistani house-arrest in a "sub jail."

Two of the wives, Amal, 29, of Yemen and Khairiah, 61, of Saudi Arabia, had to be separated by Pakistani security officials. Amal suspects Khairiah of helping Americans capture Osama. Khairiah has accused Amal of "sticking to Osama like a prostitute who wanted sex 24 hours a day." [More...]

In transcripts of ISI interviews released yesterday, Amal said: 'Osama loved me the most. We used to talk about romance - other things apart from Al Qaeda things.

'In the last days, he felt he was being tracked down by the U.S. forces and their allies. He said his death was to be orchestrated by Khairiah or family. He was ready to face it.'

Amal's not doing too well. The youngest of Osama's wives, she's the one who was shot by the Seals. Her brother says she's lost the use of her leg.

Her brother, Zakaria Al Sadah, has been denied the opportunity to visit Amal several times. This week a judge ordered her jailers to allow a visit.

Just three and a half months ago, Pakistan said the women were free to leave. Not any more. Now thy have to stand trial.

Here's a kind of who's who among the wives and children. Or you can read my version here .

Khairia bin Laden is 61, and had recently returned from a 10 year period in Iran -- also under house arrest. She is the mother of Abu Hamza, who has been missing since the raid on the Abouttabad compound that killed Osama.

The third wife under detention soon to be charged is presumably Siham Saba, also from Saudi Arabia and mother of Khalid bin Laden, who was killed in the raid with Osama Bin Laden

The second child to be charged is presumably Safia, the 12 year old daughter of Osama and Amal. A third child present, 22 year old daughter (Iman?) was also at the house and she may be the other daughter facing charges.

I assume the children not being charged are the 5 year old son of Osama and Amal, and the children of another Osama daughter who had been killed in a drone attack in Warzistan.

No one has ever, to my knowledge, explained what happened to Hamza bin Laden and how he escaped that night, if indeed he did.

Charging the women and children now, when they've already been in custody a year, seems over-the- top. Are they really going to jail a 12 year old female?

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Pakistan to Charge Osama Bin Laden's Wives, Daughters | 5 comments (5 topical)

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I don't understand how in their culture (5.00 / 1) (#2)
by Militarytracy on Mon Mar 26, 2012 at 11:16:12 AM EST

You can hold a female child responsible, even a 22 year old. It isn't as if you can have an autonomous existence outside of marriage in that culture. You are either married, with your family, or in deep trouble with no protector. And leave it to Pakistan to charge a 12 year old for being with her father. I'm certain after prison she will be mentally capable of making healthier choices than her father did.

I don't think Hamza was at the compound. Note at the compound from Oct 2010 had Hamza elsewhere, advising him where to move to avoid drone attack.

: I used to drive a Hamza (5.00 / 1) (#4)
by Dadler on Mon Mar 26, 2012 at 02:03:59 PM EST

Then Homeland Security had it rendered.
I don't understand how in their culture the culture itself can so hungrily devour its own tail. But we do it, too, in our maddening western ways. Still, this seems like a bunch of developmentally addled men making a pathetic attempt to deflect "blame" from their own ranks to the ranks of those whose rank randers them rankless.
Is it happy hour yet? Oh, I just looked, in Brussels it is...Proost! Vive! Cheers!
Hiccup.

: Depends (none / 0) (#5)
by ScottW714 on Mon Mar 26, 2012 at 03:19:13 PM EST

The culture, who's ? Saudi's, Pakistan's, or Iran's ?
And what does jailing mean, house arrest, actually prison ?
And in term of these women, no one knows how much freedom they had/have, but assuming none seems a little much considering their man lived so far away and had virtually no direct contact.
Clearly they are still vying for his love, not something I would expect from women held against their will. No one is claiming they were dragged against their will even with prosecution in the future.
The kids are too much, 12 ? But then maybe she has no place to go and even in jail with her mom is better then alone and free. There just isn't enough information to understand why they are doing this and whether these women had a choice.

Will they get credit (none / 0) (#1)
by Edger on Mon Mar 26, 2012 at 08:27:09 AM EST

for the years they spent living in a house "custom built to hide someone of significance" in Abottabad with their husband since 2005 in a protective shadow 100 yards from the gate of Pakistan's Kakul Military Academy?

Where will the CIA deliver his pension checks to now?

Without knowing a thing about the Pakistani (none / 0) (#3)
by ruffian on Mon Mar 26, 2012 at 01:35:28 PM EST

justice system, I think it is safe to say a good portion of it would seem over the top to me.