A US military mission that cornered and killed Osama bin Laden in
Pakistan was nothing short of a miracle, said Peru's President Alan
Garcia, who attributed the divine intervention to newly beatified
pontiff John Paul II.
"His first miracle has been to rid the world
of this incarnation of evil, this demon of hatred and criminality," the
Peruvian leader said, referring to the Al-Qaeda leader.
The late John Paul II showed uncanny timing, with his miracle falling on the very same day as a Rome ceremony beatifying him.
Pope
Benedict XVI on Sunday bestowed the status of "blessed" on his
predecessor in front of a million people, after the Roman Catholic
Church determined that John Paul had performed the necessary miracle for
beatification.
Garcia said the late pontiff wasted no time in
performing the second miracle needed for sainthood, making it possible
for American commandos to find and kill their hated Al-Qaeda foe, whom
they had hunted for the past decade.
"We hope that with his fall,
that entire group that had hoped to spread terrorism throughout the
world loses its importance," Garcia said.
The Peruvian leader said
Sunday's assault on bin Laden's compound "should please President
Barack Obama and vindicate former president George W. Bush," whose
relentless pursuit of a global "war on terror" became a central focus of
US foreign and military policy during his tenure.