U.S. Commando Raid Kills Osama Bin Laden In Pakistan

Osama bin Laden was killed Sunday morning during a 40-minute raid by a U.S. commando team on a compound located in a wealthy suburb of Islamabad, Pakistan. The al Qaida leader was killed in a firefight along with his adult son and two aides, White House sources said. A woman, apparently used as a human shield by bin Laden’s men, was also killed. No Americans were reported injured in the attack, although one U.S. helicopter suffered mechanical failure during the raid.

Osama bin Laden’s body was recovered after the raid and now is in U.S. possession. Unconfirmed reports say the raid was conducted by Navy Seals.

“The U.S. had a legal and moral obligation to act,” when it determined that Osama bin Laden was hiding in the compound, a White House source said. “The loss of Osama bin laden puts al Qaeda on a path of decline that it will be hard to reverse.”

President Obama gave the final order for the attack on Saturday morning. The raid was apparently conducted without informing the Pakistani government. The senior officials said no one outside of a small group in the U.S. government knew of the raid “for operational security purposes.”

The raid was the culmination of an almost nine-month long intelligence effort. Last August, U.S. intelligence operatives were alerted to the existence of a large compound believed to be used by an al Qaida courier.