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It was U.S. joint operation ground forces that took the life of Public Enemy #1 — not in the mountains but in a mansion near a major Pakistani city.
And unlike that fateful day a decade ago, word spread worldwide within minutes — including to our brave troops.
President George W. Bush congratulated Obama and the men and women of our armed forces. “They have our everlasting gratitude,” he said.
May 1, 2011 truly has become an historic day in our republic’s history. The United States’ most wanted fugitive was killed today by bullets fired by OUR troops during a firefight at a mansion in Pakistan on a mission to take him.
DNA tests were conducted to confirm it was the 54-year-old demon.
“This was an attack on the ground [on] a compound they had been monitoring for months,” said ABC News correspondent Jonathan Karl. “They wanted to do this so they could get the body so that they could be sure it was Bin Laden.”
Jerry DeMarco Publisher/Editor
“It took many months to run this information to ground,” said President Obama, who made the live announcement to the nation beginning around 11:35 p.m. Sunday, nearly 10 years after 9/11.
Obama said he “had enough information” last week to give our troops the go-ahead today to get bin Laden, who was about 90 miles north of Islamabad, in a town known as Abbottabad. Three men and a woman the government said was being used as a human shield were killed.
Minute numbers compared with 2,974 victims.
Their loved ones can never get them back, and the war on terrorism is far from over. But this can offer some measure of solace.
On 9/11, “that day, no matter where we came from, what God we prayed to, or what race or ethnicity we were,” Obama said, “we were united as one American family. We were also united in our resolve to protect our nation … and to bring those who committed this vicious attack to justice.”
Bin Laden “was not a Muslim leader. He was a mass murderer of Muslims,” our nation’s leader said. “His demise should be welcomed by all who believe in peace and human dignity.”
As the Los Angeles Times reported, the announcement “came eight years to the day after President Bush announced the end of major combat operations in Iraq… from the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln.”
For those watching the nationally televised game between the New York Mets and Phillies in Philadelphia, it might have stirred memories of Howard Cosell announcing on “Monday Night Football” that John Lennon had been killed.
Mets pitcher Chris Young, who started the 14-inning game, later told reporters: “There are some things in life bigger than the game and our jobs…. I was inside and I heard the crowd chanting, ‘U.S.A.’ and I got chills.”
The president gave kudos to Pakistan, which he said “helped lead” American troops to their target. “They agreed that this is a good and historic day for our nations,” said Obama, who, you may recall, vowed during a 2008 debate to kill bin Laden.
Obama said U.S. intelligence forces got a lead on bin Laden “within a compound deep inside Pakistan” last August. “Last week, I determined we had enough intelligence to take action.
“Today, at my direction, the United States launched a targeted action.”
The emotions are difficult to encapsulate. Tomorrow will be an incredible day in this country, as jubilation mixes with a tsunami of emotion felt by so many Americans.
The timing is almost unbelievable, coming this close to the decade “anniversary,” as well as before the expected announcement this week that the U.S. economy is not recovering as quickly as expected.
Emotions have been pouring forth since the initial announcements.
“I hope we can let this event trigger us psychologically to be a little bit better to one another,” young college student Ian LaMalfa wrote on Facebook.
“I just never though that this kind of closure was in the cards for me,” Stacy Palozzi, who lost a loved one in the 9/11 attacks, told ABC News. “It’s all bittersweet, but there’s a part of you that almost wants to celebrate, although that’s not the right word.
“It’s closure we thought we’d never get.”
Personally, I’m concerned about zealots who might be triggered by this to retaliate. This rat bastard’s death was more a symbolic victory than anything, given that he was more involved with trying to evade capture than with any direct involvement with al-Qaida.
As Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., put it: “[W]hile we take heart in the news that Osama bin Laden is dead, we must be mindful that al-Qaida and its terrorist allies are still lethal and determined enemies, and we must remain vigilant to defeat them.”
I’m sure, though, that our federal authorities, along with state, county and local protectors, will be on highest alert.
“While this Satan has been defeated, his extremism lives on with terror cells awaiting our guard to be let down, our resolve to be diminished,” former Bergen County Sheriff Leo McGuire wrote to CLIFFVIEW PILOT. “But we will remain vigilant in maintaining our safety, our security and most importantly OUR FREEDOM!”
Obama pledged that vigilance. “As a country,” he added, “we will never tolerate our security being threatened, nor stand idly by while our people are being killed. We will be relentless in defense of our citizens and our friends and allies. We will be true to the values that make us who we are.
“And on nights like this one, we can say to those families who’ve lost loved ones to al Qaeda’s terror, ‘Justice has been done’.”
(Postscript: Oil prices dropped in Asian trading hours on Monday, down $1.13 at $112.80 a barrel on Nymex.)
THE PRESIDENT’S SPEECH
Good evening. 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-Qaida, and a terrorist who’s responsible for the murder of thousands of innocent men, women, and children.
It was nearly 10 years ago that a bright September day was darkened by the worst attack on the American people in our history. The images of 9/11 are seared into our national memory — hijacked planes cutting through a cloudless September sky; the Twin Towers collapsing to the ground; black smoke billowing up from the Pentagon; the wreckage of Flight 93 in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where the actions of heroic citizens saved even more heartbreak and destruction.
And yet we know that the worst images are those that were unseen to the world. The empty seat at the dinner table. Children who were forced to grow up without their mother or their father. Parents who would never know the feeling of their child’s embrace. Nearly 3,000 citizens taken from us, leaving a gaping hole in our hearts.
On September 11, 2001, in our time of grief, the American people came together. We offered our neighbors a hand, and we offered the wounded our blood. We reaffirmed our ties to each other, and our love of community and country. On that day, no matter where we came from, what God we prayed to, or what race or ethnicity we were, we were united as one American family.
We were also united in our resolve to protect our nation and to bring those who committed this vicious attack to justice. We quickly learned that the 9/11 attacks were carried out by al-Qaida — an organization headed by Osama bin Laden, which had openly declared war on the United States and was committed to killing innocents in our country and around the globe. And so we went to war against al Qaida to protect our citizens, our friends, and our allies.
Over the last 10 years, thanks to the tireless and heroic work of our military and our counterterrorism professionals, we’ve made great strides in that effort. We’ve disrupted terrorist attacks and strengthened our homeland defense. In Afghanistan, we removed the Taliban government, which had given bin Laden and al-Qaida safe haven and support. And around the globe, we worked with our friends and allies to capture or kill scores of al-Qaida terrorists, including several who were a part of the 9/11 plot.
Yet Osama bin Laden avoided capture and escaped across the Afghan border into Pakistan. Meanwhile, al-Qaida continued to operate from along that border and operate through its affiliates across the world.
And so shortly after taking office, I directed Leon Panetta, the director of the CIA, to make the killing or capture of bin Laden the top priority of our war against al-Qaida, even as we continued our broader efforts to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat his network.
Then, last August, after years of painstaking work by our intelligence community, I was briefed on a possible lead to bin Laden. It was far from certain, and it took many months to run this thread to ground. I met repeatedly with my national security team as we developed more information about the possibility that we had located bin Laden hiding within a compound deep inside of Pakistan. And finally, last week, I determined that we had enough intelligence to take action, and authorized an operation to get Osama bin Laden and bring him to justice.
Today, at my direction, the United States launched a targeted operation against that compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan. A small team of Americans carried out the operation with extraordinary courage and capability. No Americans were harmed. They took care to avoid civilian casualties. After a firefight, they killed Osama bin Laden and took custody of his body.
For over two decades, bin Laden has been al-Qaida’s leader and symbol, and has continued to plot attacks against our country and our friends and allies. The death of bin Laden marks the most significant achievement to date in our nation’s effort to defeat al-Qaeda.
Yet his death does not mark the end of our effort. There’s no doubt that al-Qaida will continue to pursue attacks against us. We must — and we will — remain vigilant at home and abroad.
As we do, we must also reaffirm that the United States is not — and never will be — at war with Islam. I’ve made clear, just as President Bush did shortly after 9/11, that our war is not against Islam. Bin Laden was not a Muslim leader; he was a mass murderer of Muslims. Indeed, al-Qaida has slaughtered scores of Muslims in many countries, including our own. So his demise should be welcomed by all who believe in peace and human dignity.
Over the years, I’ve repeatedly made clear that we would take action within Pakistan if we knew where bin Laden was. That is what we’ve done. But it’s important to note that our counterterrorism cooperation with Pakistan helped lead us to bin Laden and the compound where he was hiding. Indeed, bin Laden had declared war against Pakistan as well, and ordered attacks against the Pakistani people.
Tonight, I called President Zardari, and my team has also spoken with their Pakistani counterparts. They agree that this is a good and historic day for both of our nations. And going forward, it is essential that Pakistan continue to join us in the fight against al-Qaida and its affiliates.
The American people did not choose this fight. It came to our shores, and started with the senseless slaughter of our citizens. After nearly 10 years of service, struggle, and sacrifice, we know well the costs of war. These efforts weigh on me every time I, as Commander-in-Chief, have to sign a letter to a family that has lost a loved one, or look into the eyes of a service member who’s been gravely wounded.
So Americans understand the costs of war. Yet as a country, we will never tolerate our security being threatened, nor stand idly by when our people have been killed. We will be relentless in defense of our citizens and our friends and allies. We will be true to the values that make us who we are. And on nights like this one, we can say to those families who have lost loved ones to al-Qaida’s terror: Justice has been done.
Tonight, we give thanks to the countless intelligence and counterterrorism professionals who’ve worked tirelessly to achieve this outcome. The American people do not see their work, nor know their names. But tonight, they feel the satisfaction of their work and the result of their pursuit of justice.
We give thanks for the men who carried out this operation, for they exemplify the professionalism, patriotism, and unparalleled courage of those who serve our country. And they are part of a generation that has borne the heaviest share of the burden since that September day.
Finally, let me say to the families who lost loved ones on 9/11 that we have never forgotten your loss, nor wavered in our commitment to see that we do whatever it takes to prevent another attack on our shores.
And tonight, let us think back to the sense of unity that prevailed on 9/11. I know that it has, at times, frayed. Yet today’s achievement is a testament to the greatness of our country and the determination of the American people.
The cause of securing our country is not complete. But tonight, we are once again reminded that America can do whatever we set our mind to. That is the story of our history, whether it’s the pursuit of prosperity for our people, or the struggle for equality for all our citizens; our commitment to stand up for our values abroad, and our sacrifices to make the world a safer place.
Let us remember that we can do these things not just because of wealth or power, but because of who we are: one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
Thank you. May God bless you. And may God bless the United States of America.
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