U.S. commandos knew bin Laden likely would die

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U.S. commandos knew bin Laden likely would die

By Reuters

U.S. special forces set out to kill Osama bin Laden and dump his body in the sea to make it harder for the al Qaeda founder to become a martyr, U.S. national security officials told Reuters.

"This was a kill operation," one of the officials said.

"If he had waved a white flag of surrender, he would have been taken alive," the official added. But the operating assumption among the U.S. raiders, he added, was that bin Laden would put up a fight -- which he did.

Bin Laden "participated" in a firefight between the U.S. commandos and residents of the fortified compound near the Pakistani capital Islamabad where he had been hiding, the official said.

Other U.S. officials said the U.S. strike team shot the al Qaeda leader dead with bullets to the chest and head during the course of the 40-minute operation. He did not return fire.

Three other men and a woman lay dead after the raid, but no Americans were killed. Bin Laden's wife, originally thought killed, was only wounded. The woman killed in the raid was not used as a human shield by the al Qaeda leader before his death, a U.S. official said, correcting an earlier description.

John Brennan, President Barack Obama's top counterterrorism adviser, had said U.S. officials believed the dead woman was one of bin Laden's wives and that he had used her as a human shield.

Brennan said the commandos were prepared to capture bin Laden alive, but they knew that was a remote possibility.

"If we had the opportunity to take bin Laden alive, if he didn't present any threat, the individuals involved were able and prepared to do that," Brennan told reporters.

"The concern was that bin Laden would oppose any type of capture operation. Indeed, he did. It was a firefight. He, therefore, was killed in that firefight, and that's when the remains were removed."

The operation was carried out by a team of about 15 special forces operatives -- most, if not all, U.S. Navy SEALs, according to U.S. officials familiar with the details. They indicated the team was based in Afghanistan.

One official said it included forensic specialists whose job was to collect evidence proving that bin Laden was caught in the raid and intelligence that might be useful in tracking down other al Qaeda leaders or foiling ongoing plots.

National Journal said U.S. authorities used intelligence about bin Laden's compound to build a replica of it and use it for trial runs in early April.

Within hours of bin Laden's death, which Obama announced in a dramatic, late-night White House speech, the commandos had buried bin Laden's body at sea, two U.S. officials said.

It was done so that bin Laden's body would not become a symbol of veneration or inspiration for would-be militants, U.S. officials said.

"You wouldn't want to leave him so that his body could become a shrine," one of the officials said.

Source: Killing of Bin Laden