Osama bin Laden's death: How US killed the world's 'most wanted terrorist' 10 years ago

It has been 10 years since then-President Barack Obama announced that the US had successfully killed Osama bin Laden, the leader of al-Qaeda. Bin Laden, who was the globe’s most hunted, was killed by US Special Forces during a raid at a compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan. The Saudi-born architect of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001 had been hunted by the US and its allies for a decade and the then US president George W. Bush had even declared in 2001 that he was “Wanted: Dead or Alive”. 

Ten years later, in 2011, the US Intelligence received a tip-off that Bin Laden was at a walled compound in the Pakistan city of Abbottabad, close to a major military training academy. After consulting key military and political advisers, Barack Obama then authorised a strike - breaching the sovereign territory of a purported US ally - to target an icon of international violence and terror. Flying from bases in Afghanistan, a US Navy SEAL was tasked with capturing or killing Bin Laden. 

The full story of how, and why, America’s top security officials decided to pull the trigger that night in May has never officially been told. However, the oral history - based on interviews with intelligence and national security leaders, revealed that disaster for the Americans almost struck in the early part of the operation when a Blackhawk helicopter hit technical trouble and was forced into an emergency landing. The SEAL team then found themselves in a fierce gun battle with the occupants of the compound. 

‘Justice has been done’ 

In the ensuing firefight, Bin Laden and three other men died. A woman was also reportedly killed. After the fighting, the SEAL team then quickly gathered papers and other materials in the two buildings and clambered back on helicopters, taking Bin Laden’s corpse with them. Before leaving, the US troops had even blown up the Blackhawk helicopter. 

“Tonight, I can report to the American people and to the world that the United States has conducted an operation that killed Osama bin Laden, the leader of al-Qaeda and a terrorist who's responsible for the murder of thousands of innocent men, women, and children,” Obama said while addressing the nation in 2011. 

“On nights like this one, we can say to those families who have lost loved ones to al Qaeda’s terror: justice has been done,” he added.

Bin Laden’s body was flown to a US warship in the northern part of the Arabian Sea and buried at sea. The raid was quick, risky and deadly, but ultimately a massive success. Once his death was announced in a hastily organized late Sunday night presidential address, much of the attention focused on the bravery and skill of the SEAL operators who flew in and conducted the attack. Following the announcement, massive celebrations also broke out across the globe. 

(Image: AP)