Osama bin Laden library in Pakistan

Islamabad: A seminary for women run by a controversial hardline cleric in this Pakistani city has named its library in honour of slain al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden.

The seminary is run by Maulana Abdul Aziz, the imam of the Lal Masjid that was once the target of a military operation during Pervez Musharraf regime. In an interview with Geo TV, Aziz said, "He (Osama) might be a terrorist for others but we do not consider him as a terrorist. For us he was a hero of Islam. He is a martyr." The nameplate outside the library which read, `Maktbah Usama bin Ladon Sheeed` was also shown during the show. Bin Laden was killed in a US special forces raid in Abbottabad in May 2011. The cleric`s brother Rasheed was killed during the Lal Masjid operation in 2007. The operation had ended in a bloody eight-day siege killing at least 58 Pakistani troops and seminary students. The operation, ordered by Musharraf, followed a week-long standoff between the mosque`s supporters and security forces.