Victory Over Evil - Osama bin Laden Declared Dead

US Mr President

ABC's Jake Tapper, Sunlen Miller and Tahman Bradley report:  Tensions were thick in the White House Situation Room after two choppers full of Navy SEALS left Afghanistan to storm a Pakistani compound and kill Osama bin Laden.

The President wasn’t 100% certain bin Laden was in the compound. No one was. The operation was a surgical raid by a small team designed to minimize collateral damage and pose as little risk as possible, to Pakistani civilians in the neighborhood, senior administration officials said.


The SEALS raided the compound. A firefight ensured. Bin Laden fired back, as did others in the compound. 

Dead Osama Bin Laden

After 40 minutes of fighting, bin Laden, two couriers, and one of bin Laden’s adult sons were killed, as was a woman used as a shield by one of the male members of al Qaeda. Two other women were injured. 

During the raid one helicopter was lost due to mechanical failure. The aircraft was destroyed by the crew.

Carrying bin Laden’s dead body, the SEALS boarded the remaining helicopter to exit the compound.

White House national security staffers had been in the Situation Room since 1pm ET. At 2:00pm the President met with the Principals to review final preparations.

Television networks in Pakistan are reporting that the following is a picture of Osama Bin Laden's dead body.

At 3:50pm the President was told bin Laden had been tentatively identified.

There was jubilation in the White House once the helicopter returned to Afghanistan. 

At 7:01 pm President Obama was told there was a “high probability” bin Laden was dead.

“The death of Osama Bin Laden marks the single greatest victory in the US-led campaign to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat Al Qaeda,” an official said.

The operation had been in the works for years. Since 9/11, the CIA gathered leads on those in bin Laden’s inner circle, including personal couriers. During interrogations and questioning, various detainees flagged individuals who may have been providing support to OBL and Zawahiri. One courier in particularly was identified by detainees as one of the few al Qaeda couriers who had bin Laden’s trust. He was identified as a “protégé” of Khalid Sheikh Mohammad and a trusted assistant of Abu Faraj al –Libbi, the former #3 of al Qaeda, who was captured in 2005. There were even indications the courier may have been living with bin Laden.


Source & Read More: ABC NEWS