As I contemplate the death of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, I refuse to celebrate this moment as a victory. To celebrate any death would be to reduce myself to the level of the terrorists who killed my sister on 9/11. Instead, I am trying to hold in my heart the families of those who Zarqawi killed. I hope they are able to celebrate the lives of the loved ones they lost and renounce further violent retribution.
While Zarqawi was undeniably a cruel, hateful and violent man, I am mindful that the Iraqi society he infiltrated and turned into a place of wanton civilian killing was made a fertile ground for terrorist organizing by the presence of our military. Our world would, I believe, have been far better served if Zarqawi had been captured and tried in a court of law. Justice can break the cycles of violence that terrorism and revenge killings produce. Since that will not happen in Zarqawi
