Breaking News: Osama bin Laden is dead, Obama makes surprise announcement

[Crowds react to the death of Osama bin Laden outside of the White House. Photos via News.com.au]

Osama bin Laden, leader of al-Qaeda and mastermind behind the September 11th attacks, has been killed by U.S. Special Forces and Navy SEALs in a secured compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan (May 1).     President Obama made the announcement in a televised report Sunday and said that the attack had been "at [his] direction." The body of bin Laden is now in the custody of the U.S.

For more information on Obama's announcement and the history of the hunt for bin Laden, click HERE.

For details on the attack that killed bin Laden, click HERE.

See footage of Obama's announcement below:

NOTE #1: Footage of bin Laden's capture is now available online and it is reported that he has been buried at sea, in accordance to Islamic tradition that the body be buried within 24 hours. It is also reported that no country would take in his body for burial on land.

Bin Laden had been shot in the left eye, causing his immediate death. He was asked to surrender, but had refused.

NOTE #2: A DNA test has confirmed that Osama bin Laden is dead.

NOTE #3: The secured compound where bin Laden had been staying with three other families is located a half a mile away from a military academy in Pakistan. The debate amongst government officials and top journalists is whether Pakistan officials had been aware of bin Laden's presence in Abbottabad.

NOTE #4: Photos released from the White House yesterday show Obama and his national security team watching real-time coverage of the raid in Abbottabad, Pakistan. It has been reported that the team had received updates from the CIA, which had also been involved in bin Laden's capture.

NOTE #5: It has been reported that bin Laden was not armed during the attack. The Navy SEALs involved had asked him to surrender, but he refused. It is also reported that he had used a woman's body as a human shield during the attack.

NOTE #6: Obama has announced today that the White House will not be releasing photos of bin Laden following his death. Some government officials and media outlets have demanded to see the photos as proof, but the administration has deemed the action inappropriate for the public eye. For more information, click HERE.


PERSONAL NOTE: As serious and historic as this event has been, this is all I could picture as Obama left the podium:

Sources via The Huffington Post & CNN
Video via The White House
Photos (at the top) via News.com.au
Photo (at the bottom) via Shaken, Not Stirred