Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden was killed Sunday in a firefight with U.S. forces in Pakistan and his body was recovered, President Barack Obama said Sunday.
"Justice has been done," Obama said in a dramatic speech, late at night the White House, announcing the death of the elusive genius of September 11, 2001 against New York and Washington.
Obama said that U.S. forces directed the operation that killed bin Laden. No Americans were killed in the operation and was careful to avoid civilian casualties, he said.
"The U.S. has carried out an operation that caused the death of Osama bin Laden, the leader of Al Qaeda and a terrorist who is responsible for the murder of thousands of men, women and children," said Obama.
Is a major accomplishment for Obama and his national security team, after many Americans had lost hope of ever finding bin Laden.
A crowd gathered outside the White House to celebrate, chanting "USA, USA".
Obama's predecessor, George W. Bush has repeatedly promised to Bin Laden to justice "dead or alive" for the September 11, 2001, attacks on New York and Washington that killed nearly 3,000 people, but he never did before leaving office in early 2009.
U.S. officials said that after searching in vain for the leader of Al Qaeda from Afghanistan who disappeared in late 2001, the Saudi-born militant was killed in the Pakistani town of Abbotabad and recovered his body.
That the body can help convince any doubt that Bin Laden is dead.
He had been the subject of a search since he eluded U.S. troops Afghan forces and militias on a large scale assault on the mountains of Tora Bora in Afghanistan in 2001.
The road was cold quickly after his disappearance and many intelligence officials believed he had been hiding in Pakistan.
While in hiding, bin Laden had mocked the West and called for militants in their views animated video tapes of hiding.
In addition to September 11, Washington also has been linked to Bin Laden with a series of attacks - including the 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania and the 2000 bombing of the USS Cole warship in Yemen.