Abu Dhabi (ANTARA News/Reuters) - The death of al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden was greeted with near-silence on Monday from Gulf Arab states, including his birthplace Saudi Arabia.

By mid-afternoon, the only official comment from the Arabian Peninsula came from Yemen, bin Laden`s ancestral homeland, where an official speaking on condition of anonymity hoped the killing would "root out terrorism throughout the world".

Saudi Arabia`s official news agency merely noted that the United States and Pakistan had announced bin Laden had been killed in a U.S. military operation in Pakistan but gave no clue to Riyadh`s thinking.

The foreign ministers of Bahrain, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, attending a meeting of Gulf foreign ministers in the UAE capital Abu Dhabi, all declined to comment on bin Laden`s death.

(U.B002)

Editor: Priyambodo RH
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