hello, everyone. i'm michael holmes. >> and i'm carol costello. we would like to welcome our viewers in the united states and around the world. we want to bring you up to date, up to the minute with the latest details. the al qaeda terrorist was killed inside a mansion. they swept into the building by helicopter and says bin laden was among the five people killed in a firefight. president obama signed off on the mission on friday after months of intelligence work concluded obama was hiding there. >> senior administration officials believe the compound was built five years ago for the specific purpose of hiding bin laden. sources say facial imaging techniques confirmed bin laden's identity. a u.s. government official says dna testing is also under way. the u.s. forces removed his body and they buried him at sea. we'll have many more details on how this unfolded throughout the morning. >> so much to talk about. for nearly ten years now, new york's ground zero has been an emotion no epicenter of 9/11 and all its horrible memories, but

within minutes of the bin laden announcement, it erupted in celebration. >> usa! usa! usa! usa! >> all night, new yorkers have flocked to the site of the fallen towers. the mood there, usually reserved, of course, somewhat somber. that changed with word of osama bin laden's death. for nearly a decade, bin laden has been the most wanted man in the world. today, the fbi is updating his status with a single word -- deceased. >> i can report to the american people and to the world that the united states has conducted an operation that killed osama bin laden, the leader of al qaeda, and a terrorist who's responsible for the murder of thousands of innocent men, women, and children. >> it wasn't just new york either. celebrations broke out across the united states with news that osama bin laden had been killed.

it was outstanding and organic. hundreds of people gathered outside the gates of the white house overnight. besides cheering, the crowd chanted "usa, usa!" and "hey, hey, good-bye" in reference to the al qaeda leader. the pentagon has released these pictures of u.s. troops watching president obama's announcement of bin laden's killing. the service members are based at kandahar airfield in afghanistan. and we have mobilized our best resources to cover this breaking story. cnn correspondents are in place around the world. they're working their sources to bring you all the latest details. >> that's right. many people in new york are on their way to work, others pausing at ground zero to mark this historic moment in the war on terror. cnn's jason carroll has been there since the celebrations began last night. update us on what's going on right now. >> reporter: well, actually, we've got people who are still coming down here. nothing like what we saw last night. i think people are finally

starting to get tired of some of that celebrating. there was so much energy we saw out here last night, michael. it was really incredible. people from all walks of life came down here. we spoke to some veterans with, spoke to some first responders who came down here and wanted to be apart of the celebrations that were taking place. also spoke to a 9/11 widow. her name is diane maseroli. her husband was on the 101st floor when one of the planes struck. it was really interesting to her her perspective in terms of why she decided to come down and take part in the celebrations. >> i feel a sense of relief, a peacefulness also. >> reporter: is it a really sense of relief? i think of a lot of people who lost loved ones on that day might have conflicting feelings when you see the folks down here celebrating, for obvious reasons, but is that the emotion you're feeling most? >> i feel a bunch of different -- of course, i'm sad,

i'm missing him all the time, but i feel that justice is done and that's a great feeling for me. and i do feel some overall calm that i haven't felt in almost ten years. >> reporter: and, michael, as you saw in that interview there, you can get a real sense of what the crowds were like. i mean, where i'm standing right now, you could not have been standing in this way, because there would have been people all around us. it was really incredible to see everyone coming down here. and the common theme i think we got from a number of folks we spoke to, everyone really felt that they were taking part in history, in a sense. being down here and being with everyone, that was the overwhelming sense that we got from the folks that we spoke to. and there was another point as well. it was really a sense of closure, when you spoke to some of the veterans who were here, some of the first responders who came down, even a 19-year-old student we spoke to, who was only in the fourth grade when everything happened ten years ago today at this very spot.

everyone was in agreement in that, now that that has finally happened, some people can finally get a sense of closure and it was just fascinating to be down here as all of it was taking place. michael? >> did you get a sense of realism too, though, from the crowd, that while there was that obvious outpouring of joy, even relief that, also, in the big picture, the war goes on? >> reporter: most definitely. definitely a dose of realism as well. i think after something like this happens, obviously, people temper the excitement and the jubilation with a sense of realism. you know, especially from one of the veterans that we spoke to. he said to me, you know, i definitely feel like i can celebrate now, but there is sort of a sense of, what next? and what might happen next? but at least for a moment, i think, for some of the people who are down here, it was definitely a sense of happiness and cause for celebration. >> jason carroll at ground zero. thanks.

well, the news that osama bin laden is dead may not have brought closure to all families of those killed on 9/11, but it may bring a sense of relief. you remember that plane that crashed into a pennsylvania field after being hijacked by al qaeda terrorists? gordon felt, the president of the families of flight 93 issued this statement after bin laden's killing. i'm going to quote him now. this is important news for us and for the world. it can not ease our pain or bring back our loved ones. it does bring a measure of comfort that the mastermind of the september 11th tragedy and the face of global terror can no longer spread his evil. okay. let's get to the raid now. first of all, here's a look inside the mansion where osama bin laden was killed, possibly in this very room. abc's "good morning america" showed footage of these pictures earlier. it's a pretty graphic scene. that appears to be a bedroom. you can see a great deal of blood on the floor.

there are broken computers around. abc also reports there was another room full, like bs, of broken computers and that the hard drives had been ripped out. now let's break down some of the details on the raid. and new information that barbara starr gathered just moments ago. barbara, you just mentioned on "american morning" that this was a kill mission. does that mean that the u.s. government didn't want to capture osama bin laden alive? >> i think it's fair to say they had no interest in capturing him alive, carol. a u.s. official telling us a short time ago, directly, this was, quote, a kill operation. that was the mission for the special forces going in by helicopter. 40 minutes on the ground. when you look at those pictures, u.s. troops had no interest in a fair firefight. they were there to do their job, kill osama bin laden, and get out. once he started resisting, there was no question about it, killed by a gunshot to the head. they are very certain it was u.s. troops that killed him.

there was no suicide, no from his own people. it was u.s. troops. they know this, because we now know there was secure radio communications between the team on the ground and u.s. government officials. the cia director leon panetta essentially was leading the operation as it unfolded, monitoring the situation from his headquarters in virginia, just outside of washington. cia officials monitoring, we are told, the reaction was by a u.s. official that the reaction was jubilant when they got that secure radio transmission that they finally got osama bin laden. what we are looking for today is if the white house makes the decision to release photographs of bin laden dead. i've talked to two officials who have seen those photos and they say if those photos come out in public, you will have no question, you will recognize the dead face of osama bin laden. carol? >> just a couple of thing.

we know a u.s. bullet killed osama bin laden, he was shot in the side of the head, and as he fell, i'm sure that's what they mean by, you can still recognize this dead man as osama bin laden. the other part is, is they already buried osama bin laden at sea. why did they do that, barbara? >> well, look, this man is an iconic figure in his world of terrorism. what they wanted to do was to make sure that his burial site could not become a shrine, a place for terrorists to gather, or even a propaganda recruiting truly for more terrorists. basically, the goal here was to wipe him off the face of the earth, to have no location where people could rally and terrorism could be discussed, recruited at his grave site. it would be a huge propaganda site for people who are still members of al qaeda. so they wanted to basically wipe him off the face of the earth

and that's what they did. >> much or on this later. barbara starr reporting live from the pentagon. thanks. the united states has spent well over a decade looking for bolin. he was, indeed, face of the war on terror. now that he is gone, the post-bin laden world begins. next up, our experts will tell us what this means for the war on terror, the campaign in afghanistan, and the future of al qaeda. ♪ [ male announcer ] in 2011, at&t is at work, building up our wireless network all across america. we're adding new cell sites... increasing network capacity, and investing billions of dollars to improve your wireless network experience. from a single phone call to the most advanced data download, we're covering more people in more places than ever before in an effort to give you the best network possible. at&t. rethink possible.

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we're showing you reaction from all over the globe to osama bin laden's death. this is from the u.s. military academy at west point. you're going to see one cadet get ready to make the big announcement. >> attention, all cadets. attention all cadets. osama bin laden is dead. we got him. >> usa! usa! >> well, you can hear the cheers. chuck nad is the senior cadet who made that announcement. he said curfew is usually around 11:30 11:30 p.m., but people were out until 1:00 a.m. this morning and they were celebrating. joining me now with a view from

pakistan is our correspondent, nick payton walsh. you're in islamabad, have you ever seen this mansion, nick? >> no, i haven't seen this mansion, actually, but i am hearing some very interesting news from a pakistani intelligence official. he has said to me that the way bin laden was tracked down involved intelligence, primarily developed on pakistani information, he said. this basically had to do with electronic and phone tracking. he said this information was regularly passed from the pakistanis to the americans and he said basically, when it comes to this particular mansion, what was happening around there, that he referred to how the pakistanis had dropped the ball. and had slipped off their radar, but the americans had picked up on this particular series of data and begun to analyze it, from september of last year. this seems to focus around an individual who came and left from the compound. we're not clear the nationality or the age or exactly what -- exactly what he was doing there. i'm presuming he would have been used to ferry information back

and forth from osama bin laden himself. but he seems to have been the focus of these phone taps. we're also understanding that as far as pakistani intelligence is concerned, he kept an almost invisible footprint in that compound. he did not meet with other militants. and this senior pakistani intelligence person is also saying the americans came into pakistan undetected. when these helicopters arrived over the compound, pakistan was not aware of their presence. of course, they were aware of them when they left, but clear today that essentially pakistan is saying, its electronic intelligence helped the americans track down bin laden. >> so what you're saying, it was a joint operation a couple of months ago, and then suddenly, america, like, went on its own and they conducted this raid without the help of the pakistanis? >> reporter: this is what they're saying.

i think you can imagine a sort of electronic intercepts, for example, the pakistani intelligence, regularly passing on information of interest to the americans. the americans not always say what elements of interest to them. the pakistanis say they dropped the ball. they weren't focusing on this particular place, but clearly the americans were and this eventually seems to be how they tracked it down. when it came to this mission, which we now know was a kill mission, ordered directly from the president to take bin laden out, that does appear to be an entirely unilaterally american action, based upon intelligence provided to them, so say the pakistanis. >> nick paton walsh, thank you so much. >> so where does the war go from here? >> peter bergen interviewed osama bin laden back in 1997, paul crookshank is with us as

well, and we have fran townsend with us. first, let's kick off and talk a little bit, peter bergen, about what this means. is osama bin laden, he's a figurehead, he was an inspiration. was he an operational impact at all? >> of course he was. i mean, to say that he wasn't in operational control of his network is to ignore the global communications revolution. since 9/11, bin laden's released at least 30 videotapes and audio tapes, many of which have had direct connections to members of jihad around the world. they were things like, hey, we want to take revenge against the car to knowist who painted offensive cartoons of the prophet muhammad. bin bolin made that charge in 2008, as a result of which there were all sorts of attacks against the danish cartoonish who painted these cartoons and attempts to attack the danish

newspaper who put out these cartoons. in u.s. military parlance, we talk about commanders' intent. you don't need -- general petraeus doesn't talk over foot soldier in afghanistan about what's required. he puts out general instructions to his followers, and this is what bin laden has been doing before 9/11 and since. of course, he wasn't picking up the phone to do that. the fact that it was couriers, that basically led to bin laden, was of course the only way we were going to find him. because he was in a catch-22. he had to communicate a little bit, and the only way he could do that was through couriers. i'm quite skeptical about what nick patton walsh has been told. in this particular instance, that doesn't sound quite right. the administration has been very clear, the pakistanis were given no forms of heads up about this

operation. it was kept incredibly tightly held within the u.s. government, forget about other governments. >> and i want to talk to fran a little bit more about that. what does that say about the relationship between pakistan and the united states, that pakistan was essentially left out of this mission? >> well, carol, that is the product of our experience, going back across, at least two, and probably three administrations. the pakistanis have not always been reliable partners. oftentimes, you would share information and either nothing would be done with it on the pakistan side, or information would leak out and you would lose the opportunity to conduct an operation. and that's not always been true, but it has been true often enough that you could understand u.s. officials being reluctant to share this information. carol, one other thing, peter mentioned about videotapes, issued by bin laden, one of the things we haven't talked about is the possibility, just as the u.s. prepared for the killing of bin laden over the course of a decade, bin laden had to have known that he was a target. so the thing we will wait to see now is, is there a martyrdomed

video. is there a video that bin laden prepared prior to his death that would be released in the event he was killed. and we'll come to know that in the days ahead. >> paula crookshank, let's bring you in on the discussion. one of the things about fighting kate, it's difficult to fight an ideology, and that's pretty much what al qaeda is, a very much diffused operation, a franchise operation, if you would like. one would imagine there's going to be reprisal. how effective would al qaeda be? >> in the short time, there might be reprisals. al qaeda may try to have revenge for the death of their leader, so we're entering a period of damage right now. and the reminder of that danger was just last week with the arrests in the dusseldorf, germany. so they still have the ability to train western recruits in the tribal area of pakistan and send them to launch attacks in the west, europe, and the united

states. but now that bin laden is gone, al qaeda really has lost its dominant force, its strategic guide, and bin laden, in past years, has really signed off on the biggest al qaeda operations. for example, the 2006 airline plot, according to western intelligence officials, and a plot last fall against europe. so bin laden has still been operationally involved in some of these bigger attempts, michael. >> paul krukshank, fran townsend, and peter bergen, thanks. today, we'll see how the markets are reacting to news of bol osama bin laden's death. she felt lost...

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we are expecting secretary of state hillary clinton to speak any moment now from washington. when she begins speaking, of course, we'll bring that to you live. the news that osama bin laden was killed spread quickly, even to citizen citizens' bank park, the philadelphia phillies were playing the new york mets. >> usa! usa! usa! >> oh, yeah. fans spontaneously broke out in

chants of "usa, usa" during the game. but as "the new york times" reports, the players were apparently the last to hear the news. >> on 9/11, the new york city fire department lost 433 of its own and the family still bears the scars. fire commissioner at the time was on the scene to witness some of bin laden's carnage. he now joins us live on the phone. welcome. >> hi, carol. >> i've heard so many people who woke up this morning to say, did i hear that right, osama bin laden dead? did you have the same reaction? >> yeah. so many different reactions. so much excitement. it's a good thing. it's a good day. >> we heard from barbara starr that this was a kill mission.

in other words, the u.s. government wanted osama bin laden dead. are there any regrets that he wasn't brought back to this country alive to be tried? >> not on my part. i'm really glad that we don't have to go through that charade and the danger it brings to other people and the pain -- this will be quick for the families. this is -- i doubt you'll see too many firefighter families jumping in the street with joy, but they will feel a sense of relief and a sense of gratitude and a sense of, you know, that it's gone. that that part is over. it drives me crazy when i watch them have to relive the suffering, every day, just imaging how many years it would go on, and we'd have him on trial, and then there would have to be a place to bury him and have a memorial. this, i think, of course, arguable, people have different feelings, but i think and i think most of the families will be very glad that this is over and it will help them a little

bit. you know, it's a scar. it's always there, and it always hurts, but the time is helping most of the families. >> i wanted to ask you about this too. i think it's been a long time since most americans actually feared osama bin laden. do you think that fear is part of the relief that he is dead, or is that not a factor? >> i don't think it's fear. we've always been angry and we feel that, you know, the people protecting us now are doing a better job of being aware of all the dangers and trying to prevent them from being acted out. but as commissioner kelly said yesterday, this is -- it's always here. and we're lucky that some of these events that have not turned into, you know, big, big tragedies. so we've been lucky and i think we still need to be very vigilant. i hope that some of your experts are right, that this will be the

beginning -- kind of the end of his era and his ability to recruit and build his dynasty of death. but i'm more skeptical. i think that we have this terrorism here for many, many years to come, whether it's him or it's somebody else. and i think we have to be very concerned about that. >> well, we always have to keep a mind, there's other signs of hope, like what's happening in egypt and tunisia and all over the middle east. that certainly is a factor with defeating forces like al qaeda too. thomas von essen, thank you so much for joining us this morning. we appreciate it. >> back when osama bin laden was fighting the soviets in afghanistan, he made clear that one of the pillars of his strategy was economic. to financially bleed the enemy. and when he plotted the 9/11 attacks, part of the aim was to throw wall street into turmoil. let's see how the financial markets are responding to news of his death. cnn's richard quest awaiting the opening bell. what do you see, my friend? >> the opening bell, just about

oh, 90 seconds or so from now. michael, we are expecting a, i would hardly say bullish or robust open, but the market is expected to be slightly higher. anyway, up to 100 points to the good is what is being seen at the moment. that might seem muted compared to what has taken place. and the magnitude and the enormity of the news today. but put into perspective the dow and the economy of the united states, in fact, the whole measure of capitalism is very different to that what it was some ten minutes ago. the opening bell now being rang on wall street. let's pause for a moment. >> a reminder that after 9/11, the dow jones fell some 7% in the -- after the four days of

closure, six days in total. ever the market is now open on the day after the announcement that osama bin laden has been killed. the dow jones industrials are open and it's a gain of -- well, it's such early times, a mere dozen or so points, a tenth of a percentage point. way too early to make any prognostications over how the day's going to go, michael. but you can expect, whatever the final number, they know here on wall street and down by the financial capital of world, they know that this was an attack on them, and so, therefore, any response is to the good. >> richard quest, thanks. we'll check in with you later. >> as i told you a short time ago, we are awaiting word from secretary of state hillary clinton. when she begins speaking, we'll

bring those remarks to you live. also, a team of navy s.e.a.l.s is credited with killing bin laden. coming up in about five minutes, we'll talk to a former navy s.e.a.l., an officer, who has been in the terrorist leader's tora bora cave. we'll ask him how these highly trained warriors operate. ♪ sometimes i feel like...

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and welcome to our viewers in the united states and around the world, as we continue our coverage of the death of osama bin laden. i'm michael holmes from cnn international. >> and i'm carol costello. we are standing by for secretary of state hillary clinton. she is supposed to speak at any moment now, is that right, rebecca? yes. she's about to speak at any moment. are we going to wait for her to speak or are we going on? we're going to wait for her to speak now. a lot of officials have been coming out and talking about this. lawmakers, from, of course, around the united states, coming out and saying that they're relieved that osama bin laden has been killed. congratulating president obama, putting aside this partisanship, terrible partisanship that's been going on in america. >> and lick luc has been keenly

involved in the hunt for many years now. and it's going to be interesting to hear what she has to say about it. the key going forward is what it ultimately means in the fight against al qaeda. and we were saying before, that this is not an organization with a headquarters and a hierarchy and a structure and a ceo. and while osama bin laden has played a very big role, what does it mean going forward? >> hillary clinton just walked in the room, she's speaking, let's listen. >> osama bin laden is dead and justice has been done. and today i want to say a few words about what this means for our efforts going forward. first, i want to offer my thoughts and prayers to the thousands of families whose loved ones were killed in osama bin laden's campaign of terror and violence, from the embassy bombings in africa to the strike on the "uss cole" to the attacks of september 11th, 2001, and so

many more. these were not just attacks against americans, although we suffered grievous losses, these were attacks against the whole world. in london and madrid, bali, instai istanbul, and many other places, innocent people, most of them muslims, were targeted in markets and mosques, in subway stations and on airplanes. each attack motivated by a violent ideology that holds no value for human life or regard for human dignity. i know that nothing can make up for the loss of the victims or fill the voids they left, but i hope their families can now find some comfort in the fact that justice has been served. second, i want to join the

president in honoring the courage and commitment of the brave men and women who serve our country and have worked tirelessly and relentlessly for more than a decade to track down and bring osama bin laden, this terrorist, to justice. from our troops and our intelligence experts, to our diplomats and our law enforcement officials, this has been a broad, deep, very impressive effort. here at the state department, we have worked to forge a worldwide anti-terror network. we have drawn together the effort and energy of friends, partners, and allies on every continent. our partnerships, including our close cooperation with pakistan, have helped put unprecedented pressure on al qaeda and its

leadership. continued cooperation will be just as important in the days ahead. because even as we mark this milestone, we should not forget that the battle to stop al qaeda and its syndicate of terror will not end with the death of bin laden. indeed, we must take this opportunity to renew our resolve and redouble our efforts. in afghanistan, we will continue taking the fight to al qaeda and their taliban allies. while working the to support the afghan people as they build a stronger government and begin to take responsibility for their own security. we are implementing the strategy for transition, approved by nato at the summit in lisbon, and we are supporting an afghan-led political process that seeks to isolate al qaeda and end the

insurgency. our message to the taliban remains the same, but today, it may have even greater resonance. you cannot wait us out. you cannot defeat us, but you can make the choice to abandon al qaeda and participate in a peaceful, political process. in pakistan, we are committed to supporting the people and government, as they defend their own democracy from violent extremism. indeed, as the president said, bin laden had also declared war on pakistan. he had ordered the killings of many innocent pakistani men, women, and children. in recent years, the cooperation between our governments, militaries, and law enforcement

agencies increased pressure on al qaeda and the taliban, and this progress must continue. and we are commitmeted to our partnership. history will record that bin laden's death came at a time of great movements towards freedom and democracy. at a time when the people across the middle east and north africa are rejecting the extremist narratives and charting a path of peaceful progress, based on universal rights ands aspirati n aspirations. there is no better rebuke to al qaeda and its heinous ideology. all over the world, we will press forward, bolstering our partnerships, strengthening our networks, investing in a positive vision of peace and progress, and relentlessly pursuing the murderers who target innocent people. the fight continues and we will

never waver. now, i know there are some who doubted this day would ever come, who questioned our resolve and our reach. but let us remind ourselves, this is america. we rise to the challenge, we persevere, and we get the job done. i am reminded, especially, today, of the heroism and humanity that marked the difficult days after 9/11. in new york, where i was a senator, our community was devastated, but we pulled through. ten years later, that american spirit remains as powerful as ever, and it will continue to prevail. so this is a day, not only for americans, but also for people all over the world who look to a more peaceful and secure future. yes, with continued vigilance. but more so with growing hope

and renewed faith in what is possible. thank you all, very much. >> secretary of state hillary clinton there saying justice has been done, but saying that the threat from what she calls a terror will not end with the death of osama bin laden. she had a message for the taliban, you cannot wait us out, you cannot defeat us, but you can make the choice to abandon al qaeda and take part in a peaceful political process. >> and she also said, american will rise to the challenge every time. coming up, the father of a young man killed in the terrorist attack on the world trade center joins us with his reaction to bin laden's death. that interview, after the break.

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welcome back, everyone. more than 2,600 people were killed in the terror attack on new york's world trade center towers. among them, a 23-year-old, james gadiel. he worked on the 103rd floor of the north tower. >> his father, peter, is president of the 9/11 families for a secure america and he joins us now from new york. welcome, peter. >> thank you for having me on. >> we just heard from secretary of state hillary clinton that she said that america will rise to the challenge. you cannot wait us out. she sees this as a victory for america. do you see the killing of osama bin laden as a victory for your son?

>> i wouldn't call it a victory, exactly. perhaps, you know, end of one segment of this whole miserable affair, but i think withat we should not lose sight of the fact that the clinton administration bears a good part of the responsibility for what happened on 9/11. the attorney general at the time, janet reno, and jamie grelick and others within that administration created that wall that prevented the cia from talking to the fbi and the fbi counterintelligence from talking to the cia -- the fbi criminal division. and this created the block that prevented those divisions from connecting the dots, as it was put then. i think that the fact that the clinton administration failed to deal with the first 9/11 attacks as a terrorist act instead of a criminal act, helped bin laden pursue his mass murder. >> do you feel better about how the obama administration has handled this? >> not really. i mean, here's an administration

that once has insisted on prosecuting ksm and the rest of those people in civilian courts in the united states. again, they just don't get it. and i think that the failures of our government, not just the democratic administrations of clinton and obama, but the bush administration as well. what we see here is that people in the federal government can escape responsibility for their malfeasance. i think the fact that secretary clinton is now secretary of state, that this woman has been named secretary of state is a reward for the malfeasance of her husband's administrations is a perfect example of the incompetence and the cover your tail mentality of our government. i want to make sure it's clear to people that this has to do with the bush administration just as completely. we have wide open borders -- >> sir, i understand where you come from, but just in this day, in this moment, did the mission -- >> no, i'm sorry -- i hate to be

a contrarian, but what i have seen of almost the circus-like atmosphere down at ground zero and the -- i'm grateful for the fact that americans are pleased that our military accomplished this deed. but it is a small part, a very large symbolic part, but the war has gone on for many years, for great reason, because our government failed to deal properly with it. and the fact that now they have taken out this monster, it doesn't alter the fact that our government has failed us in very many ways, in very many places, in the state department, the government department, through numerous administrations. so people should not take their eye off what is the primary point here, which is the failing of our government. now, i'm not a 9/11 truther. i don't want anybody to misunderstood that i'm saying our government knew in advance what was planned on 9/11. but there were plenty of warnings that people should have been paying attention to and

they weren't. >> i'm sure most of us would not disagree with that. peter gadiel, thank you so much for joining us this morning. we appreciate it. coming up, we'll have more on what the u.s. did with bin laden's body. that's next. how can expedia save me even more on my hotel? by giving me huge discounts on rooms hotels can't always fill. with unpublished rates.

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a u.s. official tells cnn dna testing is underway from samples of osama bin laden's body. the government cagey on the disposition of his remains. we've heard some. let's hear more. zain verjee joining us from london. what have you been hearing? michael, according to one u.s. official speaking to cnn, osama bin laden has been buried at sea. it's unclear any more circumstances, any more details than just that. i spoke a short while ago, michael, to an islamic scholar who talked about islamic burial laws. and i was told essentially that being buried at sea is not the preferred way to go. buried underground is the way that is more approved by islamic law. but there are certain circumstances like if you die at

sea, you are buried at sea. or if there's a danger that your body could be exhumed it's okay to be buried at sea. i was also told that one of the reasons here is that probably the united states does not want any kind of shrine to be created for osama bin laden, any hero worship situation. so burying him at sea would take care of some of that, but there's still the possibility that many people who are his supporters would go to the place where he was killed and treat that as a shrine. one other thing that many people around the world and the united states are asking for is proof. the picture that he's dead. video that proves he's gone. >> one imageins, too, that the u.s. would have been careful how they treated his body after the death. there are certain islamic rituals that go into preparing a body for burial, whether at sea or on land. and i imagine that that was taken into consideration. >> it's likely to have been

taken into consideration, absolutely. we don't have enough information about what was done in those particular moments. islamic law says that almost immediately after death the body needs to be buried. there are certain rituals and certain prayers, but we're hoping to get more information on that. >> zain verjee, thanks. a team of navy seals is credited with killing bin laden. coming up, we'll talk to a former navy officer who's been in the tora bora cave. we'll ask how the highly trained warriors operate. ♪ [ male announcer ] in 2011, at&t is at work, building up our wireless network all across america. we're adding new cell sites... increasing network capacity, and investing billions of dollars to improve your wireless network experience. from a single phone call

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it seemed like it would never happen, but when people in the united states found out osama bin laden was dead there was an outpouring of emotion across america. people gathered in spontaneous celebrations. outside the white house, at ground zero, times square, and boston. people celebrated the death of the man who inflicted such pain on the american spirit. two dozen navy seals took part in the operation to find

osama bin laden. let's see how these highly skilled units operate. the former lieutenant of the seals led a team in covert operations overseas. kyle, you even reported from tora bora, a hot spot at one time. you were in bin laden's cave. are you surprised where they found him? >> i was not surprised. i thinking about at tora bora after osama bin laden left, there was the impression that he was hidden away in a cave somewhere. many people in the intelligence community and many counterterrorism professionals including my friend peter bergen who you had on a few minutes ago believed that the logistical capacity to hide bin laden intimated that he was probably most likely in a village or hamlet, somewhere with enough resources to be able to protect his movements and his logistics, and i think what you saw last night was the proof of -- that that theory was correct. >> when it comes to carrying out an operation like this,

everybody knows that there is a lot that goes into it. give people a sense of how much. >> as the you heard the president speak last night, this was an extraordinary healthy and meticulously planned operation. this was month and months of intelligence gathering. the adage in the community is that intelligence drives operations. and i think you saw that this was the case. once the intelligence was confirmed, then it was -- the execution of the mission was the next stage of the game. at that point, once his identity and his location were verified and confirmed, this is exactly what navy seals do. they execute direct action missions. this was a classic direct action mission, and you saw the results play out. >> kaj larssen, i hope to talk to you again on this, i appreciate the time.

this hour, our special coverage continues in the killing of osama bin laden. i'm carol costello. >> i'm michael holmes from cnn international. we'd like to welcome our viewers from the u.s. and indeed around the world. let's bring you the very latest details. >> the al qaeda leader was killed by u.s. forces inside a mansion in pakistan. they swept into the compound via helicopter and say bin laden was among the five people killed in a fire fight. >> president obama signed off on the mission on friday after months of intelligence work included that bin laden was indeed hiding there. >> in fact, senior administration officials believe the compound was built five years ago for the specific purpose of hiding him. >> sources say facial imaging techniques confirmed bin laden's identity. a u.s. government official says dna testing is also underway. >> the u.s. forces removed his body, buried him at sea. we'll have details throughout the morning. spontaneous celebrations erupted across the united states

with the president's announcement of the killing of bin laden. [ cheers ] >> hundreds of people marched to boston common, for example. many of them college students who were just in elementary school on 9/11. [ cheers ] >> students at dickinson college in pennsylvania shot off fireworks to mark the event. an ireporter says hundreds of people gathered in the middle of the campus and sang "god bless america" and "the star spangled bann banner." [ chanting "usa ] >> you hear it there, usa, usa, the chant ringing outside inside philadelphia's citizens bank part during the mets game. one fan blogged today that he saw the news on his cnn.com app and then yelled to his section

"bin laden is killed. we got him." perhaps the biggest outpouring of emotion came at ground zero. [ cheers and applause ] >> just an amazing sight, flag waving, cheering, singing went on all night at the site of the world trade center attacks. cnn has more from ground zero. ali, it was amazing how spontaneous this was, how people immediately came together. as soon as we reported on cnn that the president was about to make this major announcement. >> reporter: that's right, michael, carol. this is the logical place that they would have come. for a lot of people despite osama bin laden's long reach, this is where they felt the impact. this and shanksville, pennsylvania, and the pentagon. i'll give you a sense of the newspaper, the "new york post" says, "it's official: bin laden dead. got him." the daily news says "rot in

hell." when i got here early this morning, the middle of the night, it was mostly young people. at some point looked like there might have been 2,000 people here. the police then put barricades up, started pushing people back. sort of cordoned them to a smaller area. then as the sun started to rise, the workers got in here. and i have to tell you, carol and michael, ground zero is different today than it had been for the last 9 1/2 years. just over to my left, just a few feet away, we have rows and rows of reporters. then we've got a chain link fence, yellow fence. that's the boundary. that's the northeast boundary of ground zero. that's where the construction is taking place right now. on that fence -- hard to see with this camera, i don't think you can see it -- there are flowers pinned to the fence. there are american flags. it really is a remarkable, spontaneous outpouring of emotion. one young gentleman told my colleague jason carroll this is like our v-day. tourist as and folks all over,

feeling of jubilation. >> fascinating that so many young people partook in the celebrations at universities across the country. these young people were, what, 9 or 10-years-old when the tragly happ -- tragedy happened on 9/11. why do you think they're so into this. >> reporter: i ran into students, they said they were from scranton. they had heard the news there, it had erupted on their college campus. then they quickly got this their car and came to new york because they felt this is something that unites americans. this is a great moment for them. they've almost lived in a post-9/11 world where there's been a constant threat of terrorism. and to them, there is some substantial change that has occurred today. that will be the thing that we analyze, obviously, for days to come. is there some substantial material change, or is this largely symbolic? whichever way you see it, most people see it as a positive development. >> many thanks. i want to take you now inside the house, to a mansion, possibly the room where special

forces killed bin laden. abc's "good morning america" showed footage earlier. graphic scene. you see a bed and a great deal of blood on the floor at the bottom of the screen there before it pans around. abc reports there was another room that was full of broken computers and that the hard drives had been ripped out. according to a top pentagon official, navy seals carried out this special op to take out bin laden. brandon webb is a former seal who's been in afghanistan and pakistan. he's also worked with the cia and wrote a book called "21st century sniper." he joins us with insight into huge top-secret missions like this one. and i suppose while we get some details about this, we're never going to hear about all of it, i imagine. but to get in and out in what appears to have been 30 to 40 minutes in a place that did have several people inside and was well defended, pretty slick operation.

>> yeah. absolutely. you know, it just -- i think what this shows is that despite all the technology available to us today, just -- it comes down to these highly trained special operations groups executing these types of missions up close and personal. you know, it just -- these guys train so hard and the operational schedules are so demanding. but it really proves what these guys can accomplish. >> you know, there are debates in iraq and afghanistan with u.s. troops, but this sort of thing's on another level, isn't it? this is months in the planning. and just give us a sense of what it's like. you go into a compound like that, a big house. one presumes you don't know where your target is exactly. it's a tense situation room to room in that sort of place. >> you know, tensions are definitely high. but again, i just can't express how -- how much these guys train

for these types of scenarios. the constant rehearsal and live fire training. but you know, it's -- to produce this type of actionable intelligence that these guys can execute on is pretty amazing to see that in action. but, you know, these guys are going in this type of mission, it's very intimate, up close, and personal. they're going room to room, very methodically. the fact that they're just able to pull this off flawlessly, it just -- it shows you how well trained these guys are. >> yeah. former navy seal, thank you very much, appreciate your insights there. >> no problem, thanks. the u.s. has issued a worldwide travel alert for americans traveling abroad. the state department says u.s. citizens outside the country need to be extra vigilant because of the threat of violence from terrorists. cnn foreign affairs correspondent jill doughterty at the u.s. state department.

what's in the state department's statement, and how concerned are american travelers? should they be concerned? >> reporter: they should be, and according to the state department. you know, the word they're using is "unpredictability" and "volatility." one of the things that if you read this warning that they're saying is for americans who live abrad or americans who are traveling should be very aware that there could be demonstrations that break out at any time, anti-american demonstrations. they should be extremely cautious. and especially in countries close to the area. pakistan being one of them. you know, the embassy there in islamabad had a warning, a message to all americans in the area for three countries, lajor, karac karachi, and telling them they should be careful because around american embassies you might have action. that's the main thing. there's nothing specific at this point that they are saying in a

particular place, but it is highly volatility. >> to clarify, should all american travelers be wary no matter where they're headed or just to certain countries? >> reporter: they are saying that it could be really anyplace, especially in areas that have been affected by terrorism around pakistan, afghanistan, areas like that. but don't forget, you know, there of course have been terrorism attacks in western europe. and you don't know. it's to be vigilant at all times, and one of the best things, carol, is on the web site, the u.s. state department web site, they have a lot of information. if you just go on to state.gov, it kind of links you into a lot of things. and you can actually sign up, get registered and get these alerts. that's the most important thing. things can change really at the last minute. >> thanks for the tip. jill doughterty reporting live from the state department. the hunt for osama bin laden. this morning, new details on the mission and the grim order given to the military forces who carried it out. barbara starr joins us from the pentagon next.

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story, the killing of osama bin laden in pakistan. celebrations outside the white house last night. this was the scene after president obama vealed that navy seals had kill -- revealed that navy seals had killed the terrorist leader. he was killed in a high-security mansion 60 miles from the pakistani capital. it's believed the compound was built for the specific purpose of hiding bin laden. sources say facial imaging confirmed his identity, but dna testing is going on now, as well. bin laden's body was buried at sea. you know, the mission to kill osama bin laden took place in a country that for many of our viewers is halfway around the world. we thought it would be interesting to show the lay of the land literally. you can see we've marked that in -- it's in this remote sort of corner of pakistan. it's actually said to be a major hub for tourism. not so much these days as imagined. now as the crow flies, it is about 30 miles, about 50 kilometer, north of the capital islamabad. as you see there, you can see

the mountain range. huge mountain range in between. it's not like driving 50 kilometers down a highway. interestingly, it's a long way, 200 miles in fact, from waziristan which you can see all the way over here. it's originally the region that analysts thought that osama bin laden was hiding out. a tribal area, it's rested a lot of sympathetic people to osama bin laden live right there. it's part of the long border between pakistan and afghanistan. and it's a porous border as we've reported over the years, as well. terrorists can slip back and forth across the border. pakistan taliban is up there. it's not a friendly pace if you're a woerner, that's for sure. -- awesterne, that's for sure. and speaking geographically, osama bin laden's hiding spot is closer to india than it is to pakistan. a surprise to a lot of people that he was there close to the

capital and within literally a few hundred meters of a major military base in that town there. this base is like saying west point within a few hundred meters away and nobody knew. >> it's incomprehensive that u.s. military helicopters landed in the suburb and burst into the mansion. it is amazing. barbara starr has been gathering information this morning. and barbara, so u.s. helicopters land in the middle of suburban islamabad essentially. and u.s. navy seals burst through the door. this was a really risky mission, wasn't it? >> well, it was, indeed, carol. i would say it's not quite the suburbs of islamabad. it's a good distance from there. but as you say, a populated area, a lot of other civilian residential areas around there, they wanted to be very careful about not inadvertently causing civilian casualties. so when they landed, they were very precise getting in and out

as fast as they could. now what we know is that basically that all -- planning all the way along was that they would encounter heavy resistance which indeed they did. and it basically became a kill mission once this resistance unfolded. they are very clear in their minds that it was a u.s. bullet that killed osama bin laden with a shot to the head. as this fire-fight broke out. in fact, we expect in the coming minutes another announcement from the administration about positive dna matching, a source telling us that statement will be forthcoming. >> i wanted to ask you, who was inside the house? i have reports that there were as many as 22 people inside the house. you would expect that some of these people would be armed. do we know the details? >> a fire fight broke out so yeah, you bet they were armed. that's what the navy seals encountered as they moved in. osama bin laden, relatives of his by all accounts, other

fighters there, couriers, heavy fire fight breaking out. that's what the u.s. navy seals responded to. >> the only other question i had, i was wondering -- wouldn't it have been easier if they just bombed the compound instead of orchestrating this very risky operation? and did they do the risky operation because they didn't want to kill civilians? >> i'm not sure i know how to answer that. you know, this was an area where there were other residential neighborhoods. and certainly the top priority would be not to be killing other civilians so it was a surgical strike wye special forces, moving in by helicopter, getting in and out in 40 minutes. i think it's also clear they wanted to get osama bin laden's body so they could get the proof that they had killed him. this are photographs that the white house is thinking about releasing. we are told you will see his

face if these released. you will recognize that it is osama bin laden. when you drop a bomb, it's ofb the case that there -- often the case there that there are no bodies left. i think they wanted to have a body to be able to show. >> barbara starr live at the pentagon, many thanks. the united states has spent more than a decade looking for bin laden. he was the face of the war on terror. >> now that he's gone, the post-bin laden world begins. experts will tell us what it means for the war on terror in the big picture. also the campaign in afghanistan and the future of al qaeda. [ woman ] welcome back, jogging stroller. you've been stuck in the garage, while my sneezing and my itchy eyes took refuge from the dust in here and the pollen outside. but with 24-hour zyrtec®, i get prescription strength relief from my worst allergy symptoms. it's the brand allergists recommend most.

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people are celebrating all over the world as they wake up to the news osama bin laden is dead. this is from the u.s. military academy at west point. you'll see one cadet get ready to make the big announcement. >> attention, all cadets, attention, all cadets osama bin laden -- cadets. osama bin laden is dead! we got him. >> and the senior cadet that made the announcement tells us curfew is normally 11:30 but people were out until 1:00 this morning, and they were celebrating. so the great quest of our time

is finally over. so what happens to the war on terror and the mission in south asia? >> peter bergen here to talk about that. he interviewed osama bin laden in '97. and terrorist analyst paul c krupshank is with us, and fran townsend, as well. peter, let's kick it off with you. how if at all does this affect the campaign in afghanistan? >> well, americans have fought the war in afghanistan according to polls including democrats, this will increase political pressure on president obama to, you know, to try and make the campaign in afghanistan. but i think president obama has made a significant decision, his decision that has been not really completely processed as it's probably the most important decision of his presidency on the foreign policy front, other than the intervention in libya which is extending the american military presence in afghanistan until december, 2014, in a large

scale. you may recall that there was going to be a drawdown in july of this year. that drawdown is going to be token, according to u.s. and afghan officials i've spoken. to so, you know, bin laden's death i don't think will affect the fact that president obama has committed to a large-scale military presence in afghanistan for another four years. >> and paul, i was wondering -- i know the president and other officials still deciding whether to release a picture of the dead osama bin laden. if they did decide to do that, to prove to people that he is indeed dead, what message would it send to sensitive parts of the world? >> well, there have been conspiracy theories which are going to sprout up. if a picture is not released, that may be an argument for releasing pictures of osama bin laden. obviously if there is a debt image of bin laden, though, people who admire and indeed love bin laden, this radical

fringe around the muslim world, may be motivated to launch revenge attacks. it's a difficult decision and one that they're going to have to make quickly. >> let's bring you in on this. you know, i'm interested in your take on what this means for u.s.-pakistan relations. pakistan, of course, has lost more soldiers than the allied forces in afghanistan in their fight against extremists up in particularly the waziristan area. yet this happened on the soil. 50 kilometer from their capital -- kilometers from their capital. is this embehaviorsing? is it going to put pakistan at risk for terrorist attacks? >> it will. it is embarrassing. not only was it inside the border but it was close to the military academy, as you pointed out earlier. president obama in his address to the nation extended a hand to pakistan. he gave them some credit. he did favorably about president

zardari. bin laden chose the location carefully. the predator, drone strikes had been increasing, they were effective in unsettled area. it was clear to bin laden that he had to get to a settled area. the dispute about the u.s. not putting boots on the grounds in pakistani territory. those things counseled bin laden to move into the settled area inside the pakistani border because he thought he would make targeting harder for the united states. obviously the u.s. navy seals overcame the challenges. >> right. and peter, i wanted to come back to ask you one other thing. you know, you've got to look at the legacy if you like of bin laden. it made me think that if there's one thing he would have hated, it was the arab spring because he's had nothing to do with it. how much damage has al qaeda not having a role in that done to the organization, do you think? >> i think it's been immense. i mean, one thing that we haven't seen in any of the

protests in cairo, bahrain, b z benghazi, is pictures of osama bin laden. he's not part of the conversation. no someone spouting al qaeda's anti-american rhetoric. there hasn't been a single american flag burning or, indeed, israeli flag burning. so pro forma in part of the world. so the outcome are not going to be to al qaeda's satisfaction. and, you know, the arab spring and bin laden's death, two nice bookends to the war on terror. of course, jihadist terrorism is not going to go away. but clearly the ideas that al qaeda had, the only way to bring regime change was through violence rather than peaceful protest, we've seen that's not the case in cairo. the regime, the most important arab country was overthrown by a peaceful revolution. different from what al qaeda said in the past. >> fran, i was wondering, the united states managed to kill osama bin laden, they found him,

if it not ferrare -- did it not far from islamabad. what does it do for america's image around the world? >> look, those who supported bin laden revered him, those who were critical of the united states will continue to be. in some sense the president has a responsibility to protect the american people. we've had -- multiple administrations wanted bin laden brought to justice. frankly what our enemies and those who would criticize anywhat around the world think, i suspect didn't enter the equation. the president did what was his responsibility to do. he showed courage and con sflikz executing a very -- conviction in executing a very difficult mission. our allies -- i've gotten hundreds of emails congratulating the united states from our allies around the world who have tremendous respect for the difficulty and success of this operation. >> fran, paul, peter, many thanks to all of you. a pakistani government official says they didn't know where bin laden was but if they

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welcome back, i'm michael holmes. our coverage of the death of osama bin laden continues. >> i'm carol costello. we'd like to welcome our viewers all over the world because it seems everybody's reacting to the death of osama bin laden. >> let's see what the british prime minister, david cameron, had to say. >> this news will be welcomed right across our country. of course it does not mark the end of the threat of terrorist terror but is a massive step forward. osama bin laden was responsible for the death of thousands of innocent men, women, and children right across the world, people of every race and religion. he was also responsible for ordering the death of many, many british citizens, both here and in other parts of the world.

>> and here's what other european leaders are saying. president nicolas sarkozy of france called lo eed osama bin death a major event in the world struggle against terrorism. >> and germany's foreign minister says it is good news for free-thinking men. >> italy's foreign minister calls it a victory of good against evil, of justice against malignancy. an impromptu version of "the star spangled banner" outside the white house, strong reactions all across the united states. [ chanting ] ♪ god bless america hear my home sweet home ♪ >> crowds bursting with song outside george w. bush's home and his effort to fight terrorism during his two terms in office. [ cheers ]

>> fireworks lit up the night sky in dickinson college in pennsylvania over 100 miles from shanksville for one of the -- where one of the hijacked planes crashed on 9/11. [ cheers ] and people from washington to new york and up to boston taking to the streets loud and proud on an historic day for the country and the world. stay with us. when we come back, we'll talk to a senior diplomat from pakistan about what happened on his country's doorstep.

from celebrations overnight in the united states to a vigil now taking place in shanksville, pennsylvania, that's where flight 93 crashed nearly ten years ago. jim acosta is there. describe the scene for us. >> reporter: good morning, carol. it's been a solemn morning. very much different from washington and new york where

the celebrations have been going on, at the white house and at ground zero. this has been a much more somber reflection of september 11 and of this day which is obviously a very -- very happy day for a lot of americans all over this country. and i'm joined by a couple of nearby residents who live close to the flight 93 memorial here near shanksville, pennsylvania. i'm joined by sonny and pat lake. you live just a mile from the site of the memorial which is just taking shape as we speak. the national parks service building a permanent memorial for the people who died here. and pat, i wanted to talk to you first because you're wearing a "let's roll" sweatshirt obviously in reference to todd beamer, one of the passengers on flight 93 who said "let's roll" before the passengers tried to take control of the airplane, forcing it into the ground instead of it hitting the capitol, the white house in washington. and wondering what you think of this. >> well, to me and my family, this is a day we've waited for,

it is wonderful for all americans. thank goodness for a great government that helped make this happen. and i can't tell you -- i'm just so touched by the entire happenings of this last 24 hours. >> reporter: sonny, what are your thoughts? i mean, obviously you live close -- you have a home about a mile from this site. you must -- you and your wife must come here a lot. it must mean a lot to you. what does this place mean to you? >> jim, it does mean a lot to me. this is our third visit here in a very short time period. but today's a very special day for all of america. we're so proud of our -- our armed forces and our presidents that have fought this battle for the past nine, ten years almost. we're proud of everyone that's been involved. >> reporter: thank you very much. this kind of gives you a sense of what folks are saying here. much more subdued tone out here

on the site of flight 93 memorial. if you hear a little construction behind me, that's because they're in the process of actually building this memorial site as we speak. but you'll be seeing all of this happening throughout the day. folks showing off their pride in the united states and showing some happiness for what's occurred in the last 24 hours. at the same time, remembering the people who died here. and that process goes on almost every day here, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, carol. >> i'm glad the memorial's finally going up. jim acosta live in pennsylvania. thank you very much. score another one for social media. a pakistani man's tweet about a mysterious helicopter turns into one of the biggest scoops ever. much more coming up. a lot of times, things are right underneath our feet,

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country didn't know where bin laden was but if they had they would have done it themselves. our reporter from london. the crucial question is when did your government know this was going to happen, and are you comfortable with the level of liaison? >> well, we are confident with what has happened. and we're pleased the united states had the initiative. as you know, secretary of state hillary clinton just a few minutes ago said and thanked pakistan for its cooperation. and seeks future cooperation, as well, in fighting terrorism. >> forgive me, that wasn't the case. when did your government know this was going it happen, or did it know? >> well, it did know. it did know that this was going to happen because we have been keeping -- we are monitoring him and america was monitoring him. but americans got to know him -- where he was first, and that's

why they struck it and struck it precisely. >> when did they tell you they were going to go in? when did they tell you they were going to go in? >> huh? last night they did it. and that was the time he probably would have moved out. >> they're saying they didn't tell you until the operation was underway, or did the pakistan government know ahead of time it was going happen? >> well, i won't like to share that, but i would say that pakistan government did know certain things and we have been sharing intelligence with the americans, and the americans have been sharing intelligence with us. we have we are in close cooperation together, and that doesn't mean that pakistan would know about it. that's how osama was targeted. >> i'm taking from that that the government did not know about the exact operation until perhaps moments before it happened, is that fair? >> again it's a fact that osama

was waging war against pakistan as he was against the americans. the primary target was similar to ours. so what happened happened with our consent. there was nothing of the sort which people are questioning at the moment or creating a perception that pakistan was totally in the dark. pakistan was not totally in the dark. pakistan had been keeping areas monitored. and it knew where he was. and also americans knew where he was. they moved recently into the area which is -- the place to hide. >> right. spoken like a diplomat, sir. let me ask you this -- pakistan has lost more troops in fighting the taliban and the extremists in the waziristan, frontier regions than any western nation has in afghanistan. do you fear that there is going to be a big target on pakistan

now? >> yes, pakistan will obviously be target number one because they feel that we are the -- responsible for the operation. and we have been getting on operations on our own. and we are -- you know, we had so far 600 al qaeda operatives including sheikh muhammad and so many others when were killed in pakistan. so you can imagine that the contribution that we have made to the war. immensely, we have lost hundreds of thousands of civilians, 5,000 troops including journalists and senior officers. >> right. >> this is not a small sacrifice that we have rendered. we have -- in total if you look at what others have done, we have done much more, at least 10, 20 times more than them. >> the losses have been considerable indeed. pakistan's high commissioner to the united kingdom, i want to

thank you very much. >> thank you. cnn's nick peyton walsh joins us from islamabad and more and what this diplomat said to us. i guess a lot of americans are still wondering how osama bin laden could move into a big mansion in a populated suburb, his youngest wife of inside with him as was his son. these two couriers, osama bin laden couriers built this huge mansion with the specific purpose supposedly of hiding osama bin laden, but they had no -- i mean, you couldn't tell where their money was coming from, and the pakistani government didn't really know or chase osama bin laden out until the americans came in and did i it? >> well, that does seem to be the picture, i mean, it does explain to you what a senior pakistani intelligence official has been saying to me. now he that's there was a regular passage of electronic intercepts. so phone information, other data handed to the americans on a regular basis as part of the

data exchange so to speak. he says that this information led the americans to the compound and the courier in question. his nationality and name we don't know at present. what appears to have happened according to this pakistani official is that this data was being analyzed, the pakistanis according to what he said, the information pertaining to the compound slipped off of pakistani radar but became the focus of america's investigations from around about september of last year. and they were already kind of focusing in on this courier and the compound. i mean, basically this seems to suggest that pakistanis are trying to put themselves forward as being the kind of very beginning of the information that led to this particular -- this particular operation. i should also point out that the same source did say that the pakistani -- american helicopters that flew over the compound very early this morning were -- arrived undetected by pakistani military. stow does appear that they were not tipped off beforehand. this operation was beginning.

>> thank you for the live report from pakistan. all right. next up, we're going to talk about social media in this raid. a twitter user had no idea his tweet would be the first report of the milestone in history. aaah! [ airplane engine whines ] [ grunts ] [ dog barking ] gah! [ children shouting ] [ grunts ] [ whacking piñata ] [ whacking piñata, grunting ]

there were just some grouchy tweets about noisy helicopters near his neighborhood until somebody put it all together. >> yeah. this is what we're talking about. this guy in pakistan, unknowingly, live tweeting the raid that ended in the death of osama bin laden. let's have a chat with zain vergy about that. this guy, i understand, left the area for peace and quiet and was annoyed by the noise. >> that's what he said. he said "i just want to get away from everything and have some peace of mind." this is what he was witness to. this is the i.t. consultant in pakistan. he was live tweeting the raid on

bin laden's compound. here's how he writes how it unfolded. "helicopter hovering above abbottabad at 1:00 a.m." then he tweets, "a huge window shaking here. i hope it's not the start of something nasty." then he says, "the gunfight lasted perhaps four to five minutes, i heard. that was around ten hours ago. there are no other gun fights that i knowing." imagine that. we reached out but he replied saying that the media is swamping him with requests. we can't verify for real whether he heard the american helicopters or not. but we note this -- he was in the city where it happened, and he was posting these tweets hours before we heard president obama was set to make a statement. this is where it broke first. back to you. >> on twitter. zain, we were wondering, how is the international media playing the story? >> i was looking at the newspaper headlines. in the u.k., this is "the daily

telegraph." "the butcher of 9/11 is dead. the killing of osama bin laden is a massive blow to islamist terrorism." it goes on to say there can be no doubt that this is a massive blow to the al qaeda network, but there can be no room for complacency. in israel, "netanyahu: killing of bin laden is resounding victory for justice." they qat the -- they quote shimon peres as saying, "this is a great achievement for the american security establishment. a great achievement for the u.s. president." and "the financial times." "security experts warn against complacency." it says an international expert quotes, "operatives will fill his shoes, and the intellectual aspect of the movement is still well and truly kicking." i spoke to a few analyst who said that that was something that was really key, the fact that the ideology was still alive and well, even though this

particular al qaeda original structure may not be as -- as effective as it once was. it's the ideology that's inspiring other groups like al shabab, al qaeda on the, arabia peninsula. that's the danger. >> thank you. they were just children on september 11. now these college students are celebrating the death of osama bin laden. [ chanting ] >> we'll go inside the million dollar mansion in pakistan where bin laden was killed. that's ahead. from at&t. the phone that changed everything. but think about it. how can you make one of the most amazing phones the world has ever seen even more amazing? make it $49. yep. that'll work. the iphone 3gs. now at a price that changes everything, too.

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or call 877-242-usaa. since the tragedy of 9/11, american forces had searched for the man who masterminded the worst terror attack the u.s. has ever seen. and when they found him, osama bin laden was hiding in plain sight. on sunday night, president obama announced what so many had waited to hear for so long. take a listen. >> it was nearly ten years ago that a bright september day was darkened by the worst attack on the american people in our history. the images of 9/11 are seared into our national memory. hijacked planes cutting through a cloudless september sky, the twin towers collapsing to the

ground. black smoke billowing up from the pentagon. the wreckage of flight 93 in shanksville, pennsylvania, where the actions of heroic citizens saved even more heartbreak and destruction. yet we know that the worst images were those unseen to the world. the empty seat at the dinner table. the children forced to grow up without their mother or father. parents who would never know the feeling of their child's embrace. nearly 3,000 citizens taken from us leaving a gaping hole in our heart hearts. on september 11, 2001, in our time of grief, the american people came together. we offered our neighbors a hand, and we offered the wounded our bloo we reaffirmed our ties to each other and our love of community and country. on that day, no matter where we ca