Osama dead: Obama administration claims information from detainees led to the killing of Osama

NEW DELHI: The American success in hunting down Osama bin Laden may encourage governments to withstand pressure from liberals and opt for strong anti-terror laws and tough interrogation techniques.

The Obama administration, which has never spared an opportunity to claim that its anti-terror approach was different from that of George Bush, has now been acknowledging that information from detainees led to the capture and killing of bin Laden.

Reports from Washington said that in Pentagon briefings, officials admitted that "key information was gleaned from detainees and that detainee reporting provided insights into the bin Laden courier network." They also said it was the result of "multiple detainees debriefed over a number of years."

The Wikileaks dump also suggested that intelligence officials obtained valuable clues on bin Laden`s whereabouts from the interrogations of key al-Qaeda leaders Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and Ibn al-Shaykh al-Libi. The leaked cables suggested that the interrogation approaches at Guantanamo Bay have been beneficial for the anti-terror efforts.

Incidentally, the Obama administration has moved away from the campaign rhetoric to accommodate key elements of Bush`s anti-terror policy. Obama had gone along with the decision of law makers to put restrictions on the plans to shut down Guantanamo.

The New York Times said the discussion of what led to bin Laden`s demise has revived a national debate about torture that raged during the Bush years. The former president and many conservatives argued for years that force was necessary to persuade Qaeda operatives to talk. Human rights advocates, and Obama as he campaigned for office, said the tactics were torture, betraying American principles for little or nothing of value.

Governments across the globe have been finding it difficult to legislate tough anti-terror laws. The campaign unleashed by the liberal sections have been finding support from sections that project such laws inimical to the interests of certain religious communities.