American Exceptionalism and the bin Laden Raid

Marouf Hasian

Third World Quarterly, 2012, vol. 33, issue 10, 1803-1820

Abstract: This paper argues that Operation Neptune Spear, or the bin Laden Raid, reinforced US elite and public beliefs in American exceptionalism and the importance of carrying out numerous ‘overseas contingency operations’. The combination of textual and legal rationales for the raid treated the mission as a legal and effective raid, and it could now serve as a visual model for future aggressive war fighting. This is problematic because it emboldens those who want to move away from softer, ‘hearts and minds’ ways of dealing with enemies, at the same time that it legitimates targeted killings and encourages violations of other nations' territorial sovereignty.

Date: 2012
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DOI: 10.1080/01436597.2012.728317

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