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Osama bin Laden killed following firefight, Obama says

WASHINGTON — Osama bin Laden, who for nearly 10 years has been the United States' most wanted man, is dead, Pres. Barack Obama announced Sunday night.

In a televised announcement about 10:30 p.m., from the East Room of the White House, Obama confirmed that the mastermind of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks had been killed today in Pakistan.

"Tonight, I can report the United States has concluded an operation that has killed Osama bin Laden, the leader of Al-Qaida," Obama said.

Obama said intelligence had determined bin Laden was in a compound deep inside Pakistan.

"Today, at my direction, the United States launched a targeted operation against the compound," Obama said.

The operation was undertaken by what Obama referred to as a small team of Americans.

"After a firefight, they killed Osama bin Laden and took custody of his body," Obama said.

In his roughly 15 minute speech, Obama reaffirmed that the United States was not at war with Islam. The White House posted the text of Obama's comments HERE.

"He was not a Muslim leader," Obama said about bin Laden. "He was a mass murderer of Muslims."

Bin Laden has been wanted by the United States since the attacks on September 11, 2001 that killed roughly 3,000 people.

Shortly after the attacks, Pres. George W. Bush ordered U.S. troops to Afghanistan where bin Laden was believed to be hiding. He escaped into the mountains and has been believed to be hiding in Pakistan.

However, Obama said bin Laden was discovered in a compound Abbottabad, a city near the capital of Islamabad. That contradicts conventional wisdom that bin Laden had been moving from cave to cave in remote parts of the country to escape being killed or captured.

Pakistan has nominally been a United States ally in the war against terrorism, however if bin Laden has been living openly in the country, his discovery could lead to strained relations with the United States.

Despite that, Obama reaffirmed the Untied States cooperation with Pakistan, and said the operation to kill bin Laden couldn't have happened without their help.

Obama said no Americans were hurt in the operation, however he gave no further explanation of how they confirmed they had killed bin Laden and where his body is.