The President said the Al Qaeda leader was killed in a firefight with American special operations forces in Pakistan. He gave the go-ahead for the targeted assault after receiving intelligence as to bin Laden’s whereabouts.
U.S. military forces are currently in possession of bin Laden’s body, the President added.
The announcement comes almost 10 years after members of Al Qaeda hijacked airplanes and flew them into the World Trade Center in New York City and the Pentagon in Washington, DC. Another hijacked airliner crashed in rural Pennsylvania. Nearly 3,000 people died in the attacks.
Minutes after Obama made the announcement from the East Room, throngs of people gathered outside the White House and celebrated the news, according to the Washington Examiner.
