President Obama had the legal authority to order Operation Geronimo and to execute the plan

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President Obama had the legal authority to order Operation Geronimo and to execute the plan
Introduction
The death of Osama Bin Laden at the hands of the Obama administration evoked reactions ranging from tears of joy to critical questions about the legality of Operation Geronimo. The criticism of Operation Geronimo was surprising considering that Osama was the mastermind of the September 11 attacks and other attacks around the world. Until today, the conflicting information provided by government officials has been unable to fully resolve the legality of Osama bin Laden’s killing. The legality of Operation Geronimo seems more questionable when evaluated under international laws that prohibit law enforcement in foreign countries. Despite the mixed reactions from various stakeholders, the law of proportionality, cross border operation, the Law of Armed Conflict, the principle of necessity, and hors de combat gave president Obama the legal authority to order Operation Geronimo.
First of all, the International Humanitarian Law governing the legal use of force related to armed conflict uses proportionality to assess military necessity. The law of proportionality advocates for balance punishment that matches the seriousness of the crime committed. Osama Bin Laden was well recognized for orchestrating the September 11 attacks, which resulted in the deaths of approximately 3,000 Americans. Osama Bin Laden was also responsible for the 1998 US embassies bombings in Dar es Salaam and Nairobi that killed more than 200 individuals (Jeffords & Al-Sumait, 2015). Therefore, the Obama administration was justified in killing Osama because death is proportional to the crimes he committed.
Secondly, the gradual changes in the application of the Law of Armed Conflict give any president the legal authority to eliminate any threat against his/her country. After the September 11 attack, the US made it clear and has reiterated severally that it is in armed conflict with Al-Qaida and Al-Shabaab. This means that non-state organizations that engage in continuous combat with the United States are lawfully subject to targeting as long as there is material evidence against them (Taft IV, 2016). In this case, Osama Bin Laden was not an exception because he was the leader of Al-Qaida and was wanted by several jurisdictions. Consequently, as the president of the United at the time of Osama’s death, Obama acted lawfully.
Thirdly, in cross border operations, international laws allow a country to take action against fugitives who threaten their peace and security. The authorities of Pakistan had the legal obligation to capture Osama Bin Laden and proportional pun...