Osama bin Laden — the longtime leader of al Qaeda — was killed by U.S. forces in a mansion about 100 kilometers, or 62 miles, north of the Pakistani capital of Islamabad along with other family members, a senior U.S. official told CNN.
Members of Pakistan’s intelligence service, the ISI, were on site in Abbottabad during the operation, a senior Pakistani intelligence official said. Bin Laden resisted the assault and was killed in a firefight, senior administration officials said.
The Pakistani intelligence official said he did not know who fired the shot that actually killed the terror mastermind. U.S. sources including a senior official and a congressional source familiar with the operation said bin Laden was shot in the head. Three other men were also killed in raid, as was a woman who was being used as a human shield, senior administration officials said.
The U.S. team was at the compound for about 40 minutes, the officials said. There were no casualties on the American side, although a U.S. helicopter crashed during the raid due to mechanical problems. The helicopter was then destroyed for security reasons, senior administration officials said.
A senior administration official told reporters that Obama’s administration did not share intelligence gathered beforehand with any other country — including Pakistan — for security reasons.
The official said only a small group of people inside the U.S. government knew about this operation ahead of time. Another official said a “small U.S. team” was involved in the operation; but the official would not confirm any U.S. military involvement.
However, a senior defense official said U.S. Navy SEALs were involved.
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