Terrorist Leader Osama Bin Laden Dead (Upper-Intermediate News Lesson)

With Answers! | Download Free Upper-Intermediate Osama bin Laden Terrorism Lesson plan here: Osama-bin-Laden-dead-Terrorism-UppIntermediate-02052011.doc

Terrorism News Lesson Plan: Warm-up

Are these examples of terrorism? Circle Yes or No. Try to explain your answers.

  • Greenpeace stopping a Japanese whaling boat. Yes/No
  • The bombing of a medical clinic where abortions take place. Yes/No
  • The hacking of a U.S. government website. Yes/No
1)    How would you define terrorism?
2)    What were you doing when the 9/11 terrorist attacks happened?

Terrorist Leader Osama Bin Laden Dead (May 2nd, 2011)

U.S. President Barack Obama has announced that Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden was killed on Sunday, May 1st, 2011. Spontaneous celebrations were held across America as the news of the death of America's most wanted man spread. The feeling was euphoric in front of the White House. U.S. Marine Jake Diliberto commented, "We feel really really vindicated that we finally got him.” For U.S. soldiers, this was the day they were fighting for.
Bin Laden was found and killed in a compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan. U.S. intelligence found the compound by tracking one of his personal couriers. The name of the courier was received years earlier through “questionable” methods used on terrorist suspects in CIA prisons.
After a short fight, U.S. military forces captured bin Laden's body. The US media reports that the body was later buried at sea to according to Islamic practice of a burial within 24 hours and to prevent a burial site from becoming a shrine.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton commented that the recent protests in the Arab world against authoritarian governments are another sign of the defeat of al-Qaeda and its heinous ideology. Western allies are calling the news an achievement. Other leaders, such as Prime Minister Ismail Haniya of Gaza, have called bin Laden a “Muslim and Arabic warrior” who fought two superpowers in the name of jihad.
US embassies are on high alert, fearing the possibility of reprisal attacks by al-Qaeda.
Bin Laden claimed responsibility for the 9/11 terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people. He had evaded capture for nearly 10 years, despite a 25 million dollar bounty on his head. [269 words]
[Original: http://www.voanews.com/english/news/US-Celebrates-Osama-Bin-Ladens-Death-121087014.html, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-13256676, http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/americas/us-was-led-to-bin-ladens-compound-by-unwitting-courier/article2007202/]

Terrorism ESL News Lesson Plan: Comprehension Questions

1)    True or False: People are protesting in front of the White House.
2)    How was bin Laden's location found?
3)    What did the author mean by writing that the methods of questioning suspects by the CIA were “questionable”?
4)    Where is bin Laden's body presently? Why is it there?
5)    According to Hillary Clinton, what is another sign of the end of Al Qaeda?
6)    True of False: There have already been counterattacks made by Al Qaeda.
Answers
1 - False. They are celebrating.
2 - The location of his compound was found by tracking his courier.
3 - The author meant that many people did not support the methods because they were cruel and against human rights.
4 - It has been spread into the sea. According to the US media, they did this to follow an Islamic burial practice.
5 - The recent protests in Tunisia, Egypt, Syria, and Libya are another sign of the end of Al Qaeda.
6 - False.

Terrorism ESL News Lesson Plan: Vocabulary Matching

Match the words with their meaning as used in the news lesson.
spontaneous
euphoric
vindicated
courier
shrine
heinous
ally (noun)
on alert
reprisal
evade (verb)
bounty
Answers
  • spontaneous - unplanned
  • euphoric - joyful
  • vindicate - justify
  • courier - messenger
  • shrine - holy place of worship
  • heinous - evil, terrible
  • ally - friend, supporter
  • on alert - watchful, attentive
  • reprisal - retaliation, counterattack
  • evade - avoid
  • bounty - monetary reward

Terrorism ESL News Lesson Plan: Connect the below idea(s) to make a sentence.

government / uprising
spontaneous / celebration
euphoric / streets
actions / vindicated
courier / track
heinous / crime
U.S. / ally
embassy / on alert / reprisal
evade / taxes
25 million dollars / bounty
Possible answers
  • After the news was announced, there were spontaneous celebrations in the streets.
  • The feeling was euphoric in the streets.
  • The actions of the CIA were vindicated by the capture of bin Laden.
  • The courier was tracked by monitoring his phone calls.
  • The dictator committed heinous crimes against his enemies.
  • Canada is an ally of the U.S., although Canada did not participate in the invasion of Iraq.
  • American embassies are on high alert due to fear of reprisals.
  • The millionaire was arrested for trying to evade taxes.
  • A bounty of 25 million dollars was offered for information about bin Laden.

Terrorism ESL News Lesson Plan: Debate 1

Student A: You don't believe that bin Laden was killed. Why as the body buried at sea? Where is the evidence? Suggest to your partner that the story is just a lie. (extra: many people believe the 9/11 terrorist attacks were done by the U.S. government, and not Al Qaeda. Bring this into the conversation if you want.)

Student B:  You are happy that bin Laden has been killed. You are hopeful that the war against terrorism will end soon. Tell your partner that you are glad the world will soon be peaceful.

Terrorism ESL News Lesson Plan: Debate 2

Student A: Even though bin Laden has been killed, you don't support the use of torture methods on prisoners. You believe these methods were used in prisons such as Guatanamo Bay. Tell your partner the U.S. government needs to respect basic human rights, even when dealing with terrorist suspects.

Student B: You support the use of torture, even horrible torture, to get information from terrorist suspects. Think of reasons to support your argument. Your partner will begin the conversation.

Terrorism ESL News Lesson Plan : Discussion Questions

(Write your answers in the Comments section below if you wish).

  1. Can you imagine celebrating the death of someone?
  2. Do you think there is terrorist activity happening in your area?
  3. How do you think the location of the compound will affect US-Pakistan relations?
  4. Being a patriot: would you go to war to fight terrorism?
  5. The most wanted: who are the most wanted criminals in your country?
  6. Was the US-lead invasion of Iraq in 2003 an act of terrorism?
  7. Personal rights:  A month after 9/11, the Bush government signed a law named the US Patriot Act. This law allowed the government to closely monitor telephone calls, emails, and other personal data. Would you support such a law in an emergency?
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News lesson plan copyright Matthew Barton of Englishcurrent.com

2 comments on “Terrorist Leader Osama Bin Laden Dead (Upper-Intermediate News Lesson)

  1. Pingback: Obama got Osama « Diary of a Teacher

  2. Solange Ram­reZ. (Posted on 2-25-2020 at 18:02) Reply

    I appreciate very much your lesson plans, they are amazing.
    I’d like to add though that this UPPER-INTERMEDIATE lesson is quite similar to the INTERMEDIATE one.
    Just saying, gonna use it with my students, THANKS

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