Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Osama bin Laden gunned down in Pak - Pics yet to be revealed

WASHINGTON/ABBOTTABAD, MAY 02 -


Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden was killed in a US-led operation involving helicopters and ground forces in Pakistan on Sunday, ending a nearly 10-year worldwide hunt for the mastermind of the September 11 attacks.

US officials said bin Laden was found in a million-dollar compound in the upscale town of Abbottabad, 60 km north of the Pakistani capital Islamabad. A source familiar with the operation said bin Laden was shot in the head.

“Justice has been done,” President Barack Obama declared in a hastily called, late-night White House speech announcing the death of the elusive head of the militant Islamic group behind a series of deadly bombings across the world.

Leaders worldwide praised the killing as a dramatic success in the war against al Qaeda, although many analysts cautioned it was too soon to say bin Laden’s death would mark a turning point in the battle against a highly fractured network of militants.

Jubilant, flag-waving celebrations erupted in Washington and New York after Obama’s announcement.

It was the biggest national security victory for the president since he took office in early 2009 and could give him a political boost as he seeks re-election in 2012. Obama may now also find it easier to wind down the nearly decade-old war in Afghanistan, begun after the September 11, 2001, attacks on New York and Washington that killed nearly 3,000.

But the operation could complicate relations with Pakistan. The revelation bin Laden was living in style in a mansion will also put Pakistani officials under pressure to explain how he could have been right under their noses.

Bin Laden and three adult men, including a son of bin Laden, were killed along with a woman, officials said.

The New York Times said bin Laden’s body was taken to Afghanistan and then buried at sea.

Pictures and Videos are yet to be revealed.

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