cia director leon panetta thinks a photograph of osama bin laden's corpse should, and will, be released. the white house has not yet decided. officials worry that the grizzly photos could inflame extremists. others argue that the picture could refute any bin laden supporters who say that his death is an american trick. >> i've seen the picture and it's pretty gruesome. pit very clearly osama bin laden, his eye is mutilated. i assume where the bullet went through it. but you can recognize his facial features, distinctive lip, his beard. >> the white house is now backtracking on some details of the raid that killed bin laden. officials now say bin laden was not armed, nor did he shield himself behind one or more women. but they say they did resist capture. now the white house is blaming the errors on the rush to get information out, even as details of the operation were coming in.

and the people who knocked these buildings down will hear all of us soon. >> ten years after his ground zero pledge is fulfilled, george w. bush declines president obama's invitation to appear with him at the world trade center site tomorrow. a spokesman says the former president prefers to stay out of the spotlight. president obama will meet with 9/11 families in lower manhattan tomorrow at this time. we're going to have live coverage in the "cnn newsroom." want to go "in depth" into critical questions about pakistani intelligence and osama bin laden's hideout. now cia director leon panetta, he says, of the pakistanis, either they were involved or incompetent. >> we don't really have any intelligence that indicates that pakistan was aware that bin

laden was there or that this compound was a place where he was hiding. but having said that, this was a location that was very close to a military academy, close to other sensitive military sites. it had been there since almost five years ago. it was very unusual as a compound. i just think they need to respond to the questions about why they did not know that that kind of compound existed. >> pakistan says, it's now dismayed at panetta's assertions. want to go live to islamabad and ressa sayah. a lot of people, yeah, they got questions about the pakistanis and how it's possible that you had osama bin laden in a place that was really near this military facility in a major city. what are officials saying? the people that you're talking to on the ground? >> reporter: well, suzanne, officials want the world to believe that they didn't know that bin laden was hiding out in this $1 million mansion, blocks

away from military facilities. and their position is this, they essentially say there's lots of people in pakistan, 180 million people, and there could be some rogue former military official, spy officials, who could have helped bin laden hide out but they say, as an institution, the pakistani army or the spy agencies had nothing to do with this hideout. they want everyone to believe this. but obviously, not everyone is believing. many u.s. officials suspicion, others outraged. >> washington, the government, did not tell islamabad of the raid in advance, they feared it would jeopardize whether or not it would be held a secret. going forward, does it change the relationship, you think, between the united states and the pakistanis in terms of sharing information or perhaps not sharing information now? >> reporter: well, i think it's a damaging blow, but it's not a death blow when it comes to changing, exchanging information and it's simply because two

countries still need one another desperately. the u.s. needs pakistan in one day, perhaps ham, out a political solution and which would lead to u.s. troop withdrawal and pakistan needs the u.s. in giving its weak government, credibility, helping and withitis economy and giving it leverage with its neighbor, the arch rival in india. i think you'll still have the exchange of information and intelligence, but certainly some harsh words being exchanged between cia director leon panetta and isi officials, the top spy agency, one official calling mr. panetta's comments regrettable today. >> how is it playing out with the pakistani people, the public itself? do they believe their own government story here? do they support the unilateral attack on their own soil, on their own country? >> reporter: suzanne, some believe the story, some don't. some support the attack that took out the most-wanted man in the world, and others don't. i think when you talk to most

people in pakistan, they're tired of being linked with extremism, terrorism, and bin laden. they think the overwhelming majority of people in this country are good, peace-loving people who are just tired of being linked with extremism and they just want it to go away. >> all right. reza sayia, thanks so much for joining us. in depth to washington's reaction to pakistan, that's going to happen at bottom of the hour. cnn foreign affairs correspondent jill dougherty will join us live. also here's your chance to talk about on one of the big stories of the day. today's question, should the united states release the osama bin laden photos? carol, a lot of people talking about this. >> yeah. >> we've heard from some folks who have seen that photo. they know what it look like, how grizzly it is. is it appropriate? >> the photos are described as gruesome. the shot to osama bin laden's face apparently blew off a piece of his skull so if the

government has confirmed through facial recognition and dna that it's really bin laden, why do we need to see these photos of his corpse? even lawmakers are split on the issue. >> i just don't see a need to do it. the dna has been desposive. >> unless al qaeda acknowledged that bin laden was dead, it was important for the united states to release the picture of his body that confirmed that he is dead. >> fas to prove that point, the taliban says it doesn't believe it. the administration is worried, though that releasing these graphic photos will spark violent acts of revenge. but a cnn poll found 56% of americans want photos released, not mention the conspiracy theorists all over twitter facebook. even the son of a 9/11 victim is demanding more proof saying they should submit video. it would be somewhat gruesome but it's something we should be able to see. the thing is, most people do believe bin laden's dead.

so why is it so important to see the death photos? here's one big reason. osama bin laden remains a heroic, defiant figure to many in the islamic world. as cnn terror analyst peter bergen says seeing bin laden truly dead will end the myth. and puncture what remains of his heroic glow among his followers. so the talkback question today, should the u.s. release the bin laden death photos. facebook.com/carolcnn. i'll read your responses later this hour. >> i understand if it happens it's going to happen fairly quickly. we'll see what the white house, the administration, decides. i wanted to tell you, i had a chance to interview former president jimmy cart yesterday at his office in plains, georgia. he weighed in on this. we asked him the very question. we asked him about, what is the significance of bin laden's dea death? i between play a little bit for you. >> osama bin laden is dead. >> yes. >> what is the significance? >> i think it's quite significant. i wouldn't say that the threat

of terror up is eliminated but it's substantially reduced. >> do you think president obama, now having brought bin laden to justice will serve another term? its too early to predict. i hope so, i believe this has substantially enhanced his political standing. his reputation among people, particularly those that didn't think he was a strong, competent person that could carry out a mission successfully. >> is the war on terror over? is it time to get out of afghanistan? >> i would hope that this could expedite our exit from afghanistan. but certainly the war's not over. >> he has a very pragmatic approach about this, and he talks about the role of afghanistan and pakistan, and unlike many of the administration officials says that we need pakistan, it's a nuclear power, and we still need them and we need to look the other way sometimes if we suspect they're not cooperating. >> you can never ignore that fact, that they do have nuclear weapons. and the big worry from the united states' standpoint is if

somebody nefarious gets hold of the nuclear weapons and then what might happen? >> right. >> you want the government that's in place now to kind of stay there and you want to be kind of friendly with the government. >> we have a lot more with carter and his own experience with going ahead with a military -- >> how old is he? >> 86. he's sprying interest, exciting. >> came from north korea, too. >> an hour with him yesterday, quite amazing. >> i can't wait to hear more. >> more of my exclusive interview with president carter in the next two hours and including whether or not he thinks the death of bin laden is an end to the war on terror. >> 200 square miles of missouri farmland are under water today. the army corps of engineers blew up a levee to lower water on the mississippi and ohio rivers and save the town of cairo, illinois. the floodwaters will flow back into the mississippi through two blown levees down river. farmers aren't happy about the manmade flood. >> so many owe motions.

it's hard to explain it. the biggest one's sick to your stomach. farming's all i ever have done. 93-year-old woman is just fine today, after the missouri national guard rescued her from floodwaters. she tried to drive across a highway that had been swamped by the black river. here's rundown of some of the top stories we're covering in the next two hours. u.s. officials revising details of the assault that killed osama bin laden. we'll go live to where it happened. also, anatomy of a raid. what went down wasn't the only option being considered. plus -- bin laden's body buried at sea. we'll look at islamic funeral traditions. and a week after a deadly swarm of tornadoes, cleanup and

recovery in alabama. finally, more of my exclusive interview with former president jimmy carter. does he think the war on terror is over? h funds, iras, or annuities. back then, he had something more important to do. he wasn't focused on his future but fortunately, somebody else was. at usaa we provide retirement solutions for our military, veterans and their families. from investments... to life insurance... to health care options. learn more at usaa.com/retirement or call 877-242-usaa. oh! [ both slurping ] ♪ [ female announcer ] the irresistible taste of cinnamon toast crunch. crave those crazy squares.

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information. nic, what have you learned? >> reporter: well, what we have learned is that there were 17 to 18 people inside the compound, that 4 men were killed, that the woman with bin laden leaved possibly to be his wife was shot in the leg, and all of the people who were injured or nearly moved out of the way of the killing of bin laden and the others there were left for pakistani authorities to round up later and the pakistani government now has custody of those people and is providing those with medical treatment that require it and says they will repatriate them to their countries of origin. if provides more clarity on what was found in the building at time and how events unfolded. of course, the key issue is what bin laden was doing precisely if

he didn't have a weapon. what moves was he making. what impression was he creating? th what his next move, a violent move or nearly moving to hide and defend himself? >> nic, what is happening at compound now? we are seeing pictures of that compound inside. do we know what is taking place today on the ground? >> reporter: well, earlier in the day the police sealed off the compound again and there were vehicles seen approaching it, what looked like a government official vehicle, helicopter coming down close to it as well. impossible to say who and who was going on, exactly who was visiting the compound. but it did give the impression government officials of some time were going in to take a look. later in the day, police guard, security, 50 yards from the compound, and people as we saw

yesterday, just a handful of police guarding it now. not clear what the long-term plans are, if the government does plan to blow it up, to stop it turning into a shrine, or whether they'll try to keep it. it does seem it is drawing and continues to draw quite a crowd. >> do they fear that if the compound remains, that people will praise bin laden that he will go down as a martyr, there will be a place for people to actually gather and to consider him a hero in some ways? >> reporter: i think that is concern, that if you leave the building, about t. becomes a shrine of sorts for anyone who is to al qaeda to come to, beyond that, this town, this has been a peaceful town it about hasn't experienced the violence the rest of the dren has experienced but it's going to be tarnished as the place where bin

laden finally holed up and was killed, whether the world's most wanted terrorist could hide out. that's not a reputation this city wants. what happens to the house likely could be determined by the central government. for many people in the city they would like any association to do with bin laden just to be erased because they want the city to be remembered for what it is, a place of education, a place of institutional city, not somewhere where bin laden spent his final days, suzanne. >> nic, i understand that you are learning new details today. >> reporter: well, some of the interesting things that we're hearing what we're trying to find out is, could bin laden really have lived in the building without pakistan's intelligence services knowing. there were definitely two schools of thought. this is a city that is growing rapidly, and it also has a big population that comes in in the

summer because it's cooler and it's a better place to live. and it does provide an environment, some people say, where bin laden really could have chosen to come for specifically for that reason, transient population wouldn't draw attention. but there are others here, significant people, i talked to the head of the bar association in the city, lawyers, believing that the united states shun have come in here, they're against the attack, they're against their own government. in fact they believe that all of this of bin is hogwash. they don't believe it until they see photographic proof, evidence that he was here and he was killed here. they're of the opinion if he did leave live here then tell against services must have known. they point they don't trust the government. this is a backlash that the government here worries about a lot. suzanne? >> all right. nic robertson, thank you for your report. the raid on bin laden's compound didn't quite play out as planned. it wasn't the only option that it wasn't the only option that was actually being looked at.

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details are emerging about the precisely choreographed raid on osama bin laden's compound. we now have the strategy that played out in pakistan. we know it was not the only option that was under consideration. cnn's suzanne kelly explains, president obama's intelligence team looks at other equally

complex plans before the president made the final decision. >> reporter: the u.s. had at least two scenarios ready. one, drop a bomb on the compound. minimal u.s. risk, but there would be collateral damage and maybe no body to prove bin laden had been killed. the other, to send in a highly trained special ops team without telling the pakistanis. we now know the president picked the latter, it was risky, about and there were no guarantees. >> there is nothing that confirmed that bin laden was that the compound. >> reporter: and there were haunting reminders of similar missions gone wrong. like the one for trade in the movie "blackhawk down" recounting the 1993 mission in somalia in which 18 americans were killed. despite risks the decision was made to go in. the pakistanis said tuesday that the u.s. helicopters involved in the operation took advantage of gaps in pakistani radar coverage due to the hilly terrain to fly undetected. the navy s.e.a.l.s landed in the

compound and met with resistance. they shot three men, one bin laden's son. they also encounters the former head of al qaeda himself. the white house now says he was unarmed. the s.e.a.l.s shot bin laden twice, one in the head, once in the chest. then they uploaded images of the dead man to compare it with face recognition software. but the mission wasn't over. one of the helicopters wasn't able to fly. so they destroyed it before stealing away with bin laden's body. the intelligence path that led to the moment started many years earlier, in secret cia prisons and here at guantanamo, where detainees were being held by the u.s. >> it's kind of like a novel. they're interrogating high value detainees like khalid shaikh mohammed, getting information about possible courier whose may be helping osama bin laden. >> reporter: one name kept coming up, abu ahmad al ka waity. other detainees told he was a

courier, as well as associate of alleged 9/11 master mind, khalid shaikh mohammed a lead that paid off, delivering not only bin laden himself but what the cia director calls an impressive haul of information. likely leading u.s. officials down an entirely new intelligence trail. suzanne kelly, cnn, atlanta. >> one of his greatest achievements in office was bringing together two rival nations and a tumultuous middle east, egypt and israel. jimmy carter says you have to have all sides at negotiating table, including what the obama administration calls a terrorist organization. hamas. >> there have been atrocities committed by hamas and fatah and of course on occasion a lot of palestinians are killed who are not combatant. things happen in a case of serious disagreement, but the new agreement, in my opinion, is

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sadly, no. oh. but i did pick up your dry cleaning and had your shoes shined. well, i made you a reservation at the sushi place around the corner. well, in that case, i better get back to these invoices... which i'll do right after making your favorite pancakes. you know what? i'm going to tidy up your side of the office. i can't hear you because i'm also making you a smoothie. [ male announcer ] marriott hotels & resorts knows it's better for xerox to automate their global invoice process so they can focus on serving their customers. with xerox, you're ready for real business. here's a rundown of some of the stories we are working on now. my exclusive interview with former president jimmy carter. he tell me what he thinks of bin laden's death, plus a closer look at pakistan's relationship with the united states.

then, the u.s. raid that killed bin laden was not the only option. we're going to look at what else was on the table. and 30 minutes from now, the rush to bury bin laden at sea, did it really follow islamic tradition? cnn "in depth," a war but with what end. i spoke with former president jimmy carter at his office in plains, georgia, yesterday, and the killing of bin laden, and pakistan's importance in the war on terror were some of the things that we talked about. what do you make of the fact that osama bin laden was found in pakistan in a city $1 million home, not far from islamabad? do we think that we can trust the pakistani government? >> i think when we're in doubt about pakistan we have to give them the benefit of the doubt. >> why? >> because they're so crucial. remember that pakistan probably has at least 100 nuclear weapons and i think that our alliance with pakistan, despite some

obvious difficulties, is extremely important. >> so president carter says we have to forgive them, if they make mistake. but not everybody in the government, the united states government, is ready to forgive pakistan. i want to bring in our foreign affairs correspondent, jill dougherty, at the state department. many top u.s. officials, they want some answers here. you've been talking to folk. what do they want to hear from the pakistanis now? >> reporter: well, the overriding question is, how could osama bin laden be living there next to their equivalent of west point without somebody knowing about it. and there are various level, number one concretely, they're pressing the pakistanis to give them specific information, things like who owned the compound, when was it built, what kind of security did it have, and then the second level would be, remember the computers and the hard drives that the navy s.e.a.l.s took out of the compound, they're being analyzed.

and they're looking for any information that they could glean. about that would be not only on the compound but communications that bin laden might be having with various people that could lead them to obviously, you know, the question would be, were there any high level or any type of communications or connection with pakistani officials. the last thing you have personal meetings and one of them took place in islamabad when the special rep from the united states, mark grossman met with the president, head of military intelligence, and this subject came up. one thing that we are hear, and this could be entirely possible, officials are telling us, there could be people at the top who did not know and they have said they did not know, but there might be people who are below and lower rank whose would have some type of connection. so it's -- there's no compelling evidence at this point that the

government, the senior officials, knew about it. but there's still a lot of information. >> sure. jill, i know there's a ground swell on capitol hill to cut billions of dollars from funding to pakistan now. first of all, is it likely to happen? secondly, what would that do in terms of our efforts to work with pakistan to fight terrorism? >> reporter: well, you're right. there's a ground swell, and people want to, in essence, say you know, punish pakistan. but others are warning, and you heard that from jimmy carter, if the, let's say if they did pull the plug, freezing or ending funding for pakistan, it could be -- it could have a bad effect in that pakistan already fragile, the government already fragile. if they were to collapse, they do have nuclear weapons. and that sounds likescenario, by of that, they are very important in the war on terror. even though it's a very mixed bag, and even though there is

enormous lack of faith and doubt on both sides. >> all right. jill dougherty, thank you for putting into perspective. we are getting reaction from afghanistan as well. many people still there sympathize with bin laden. our stan grant takes us a crowded marketplace in kabul. >> reporter: osama bin laden made his life here amongst these people in afghanistan for years. he first came here as part of the area rab mujahadin to might against the soviets and aligned his al qaeda network to the taliban, the taliban themselves gave him protection while he plotted 9/11. even after the u.s. invasion and the toppling of the taliban regime, they still refused to give up bin laden, walking around this crowded marketplace today, you can still find some sympathy for the dead terrorist leader. >> translator: it's not at all good for islam that he's dead.

>> reporter: for many of these people, all they have known is war. the battle with the soviets, the civil war then for control of the country, the years under the taliban and, of course, the american invasion and the battle that we've seen here for the past decade. it's a gritty life. people find their life where they can, they make their living wherever they can find it. these people, of course, are concerned about their future. one of the things on their mind is whether the taliban will come back, whether bin laden's death is a game changer, whether or when the u.s. will actually leave afghanistan. many people looking forward to the day when there is no more foreign interference in this country. >> translator: why should americans come and run my country. >> i don't go to other countries. i can run my country. >> reporter: amongst the people that i've spoken to here, you don't find an overwhelmingly negative attitude to the taliban. some here say that the taliban

may come back to power and may play a constructive role in the future of the country. there's a mixed attitude to hamid karzai, whether he's a strong enough leader to build this country. what they all do call for is unity. they want the afghan people to bind together, that when al qaeda is gone, when the taliban is gone, whatever happens in the future of this country, they able to build that future together. stan grant, cnn, kabul. floodwaters start to drop around cairo, illinois, after an intentional levee breach. but across the mississippi river in missouri, there's a lot of farmers who are upset. their land now covered with water. we're going to go live to the flood zone. p that's a coffee and two pills. the afternoon tour begins with more pain and more pills. the evening guests arrive. back to sore knees. back to more pills. the day is done but hang on... her doctor recommended aleve. just 2 pills can keep arthritis pain away all day

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one week after a massive tornado outbreak, parted of the south are shifting their focus from rescue now to recovery. a.m. alabama, as you know, hit the hardest and the state's governor is promising quick action to clean up and rebuild. more than 20 large tornadoes touched down in alabama, killing at least 250 people. live pictures now of a tornado relief fund-raiser. it's going on all day in

birmingham and it's sponsored by our affiliate, wvtm, and the united way. the decision to blow up a levee along the mississippi river has eased the flooding crisis around cairo, illinois, water levels have started to drop now. but now tens of thousands of acres of missouri farmland are under water. and a lot of farmers very upset. cnn's rob marciano is in mississippi county, missouri. >> reporter: day two of the exploding levee extravaganza, extreme measures taken for really an extreme flood owe vent. we haven't seen this level on the river here in mississippi and along the ohio since 1937. and yesterday they blew up a second levee. take a look at this video, extraordinary stuff, during the daytime. soil and earth blown above the tree tops. that is at the opposite end of this floodway so that some of the water can begin to drain. this is farmland. this is now not so good farmland, least for this year, and that has a lot of farmers

upset. there's class-action lawsuits happening, the stiate of missoui not happy about the solution. retracted down an old timer here during the 1930s flood, and here what happens he had to say about the situation. >> some of them are farming a lot of acres and they've been lucky that they a few years they haven't had flood. this is one of the things that happens once in a great while. it just have to take it on the chin. >> reporter: it's not just farmers who are affected. there are lunds, if not, thousands of homes flooded in this situation. and there are several towns that are completely evacuated. we went out yesterday with the illinois dnr and the u.s. official and wildlife service and they toured us around a couple of spots, olive branch, where the entire area flooded out. the roadway, water rushing over it. these folks won't get back into homes to several day or weeks. the watt already remain steady here. now they're releasing more water upstream that's been held there

in dams with all of the rain that we've seen in the last couple of weeks. this is going to affect people here for another week or so before the waters begin to recede somewhat, and then downstream and through memphis and mississippi and eventually louisiana, for the next couple of weeks. suzanne? >> thank you, rob. i want to go to jacqui jeras. you have dramatic pictures of before and after this flood, right? >> yeah. this is satellite imagery that we got in from nasa here. and this is what the floodway area where rob is looked like on satellite picture a week ago. so this is last week. now watch as i advance this. look at how that whole area right there just flooded. that's 130,000 acres that they've been talking about that have been inundated with that water. i also want to show you the river gauge here at this area. this will show you at cairo where it was when it reached its peak 61.72 feet, and there you can see that dramatic drop once they did explode that levee in that area. you can see the forecast showing

it, it's expected to stay very high around the 60 feet all the way into next week for sure. now, here's a second satellite image that i want to show you that just kind of shows the whole area a little bit better and this is a satellite image from a year ago, april. this is what the mississippi river normally looks like. now ready? that's what it looks like now. so just an incredible amount of water all over the place. there's the ohio river. here's the black river, where we've also had some levee problems. this is hundreds of miles that we're talking about dealing with this extensive flooding. the best thing i can tell you, rain has moves out of there. we've got showers up and down the east coast at this time. there is a new system that can bring in rain showers to the middle mississippi river valley tomorrow and into friday but we're only talking about maybe another quarter of an inch to a half inch so we don't think it's enough to aggravate the flooding situation but the river remains at record levels across the area and we're going to see record flooding down the line.

we'll be watching places like vicksburg, mississippi, towards baton rouge, louisiana, in weeks ahead. >> thank you so much. it was historic victory for president obama, the death of the world's most wanted man. and form israel president, jimmy carter, he sees it as a potential game changer for al qaeda. i spoke with him at his plains, georgia, office, yesterday. >> osama bin laden is dead. >> yes. >> what is the significance? >> i think it's quite significant. i wouldn't say that the threat of terrorism is eliminated but i think it's substantially reduced. >> do you think president obama now having brought bin laden to justice will serve another term? >> well, it's too early to predict. i hope so, and i believe this has substantially enhanced his political standing. his reputation among people, particularly those that didn't think he was a strong, competent person that could carry out a mission successfully. >> is the war on terror over? is it time to get out of

afghanistan? >> i would hope that this could expedite our exit from afghanistan but certainly the war's not over. >> i'll be back with more of my interview with jimmy carter. i'll ask him about 1980, the year his own secret military mission ended in disaster. w hat'going on? [ ella ] happy anniversary! are we still on for tonight? yeah, of course. of course. [ laughs ] you remembered to make a reservation, right? yeah, i remembered that. the number one thing a man should remember. i'm gonna be there soon. i'm gonna come pick you up. and i'll, uh...i'll -- i'll -- i'll call you -- i'll call you when i'm on the way. i'm -- i'm on the way. ok? ok! [ male announcer ] only at&t's network lets your iphone talk and surf at the same time.

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the similarities are striking. a covert military operation with american lives on the line. but the endings could not have been more different. for the secret assaults launched by president obama and president carter. i peek with carter about what it takes to make those life and death decisions. november 4, 1979 you authorized clearly a mission to go in to rescue americans who had been held hostage in iran. you know what it's like to authorize a mission as president obama did. what goes on as president through your head, through your heart, when you know american lives are on the line? >> well, it's extremely complex. we had instead of one person as a target, we had more than 50 as a target. we had to send in large exp expeditionary force from a long distance away and it involved eight helicopters, three c-130s and a large backup all over, and the desert area of iran. it was heartbreaking to me when

it didn't succeed completely. >> some people think if it had been successfuling you would have been able to serve another four years. do you think president obama, now, having brought bin laden to justice, will serve another term? >> too early to predict. i hope so. i believe this has substantially enhanced his political standing, his reputation among people, particularly those that didn't think he was a strong, competent person that could carry out a mission successfully. >> more of my exclusive one-on-one interview with former president jimmy carter in the next hour of newsroom. up next, former president carter weighs in on raising girls in the white house. curtis: welcome back to geico radio,

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30 years ago, president carter was raising 10-year-old amy in the white house. i remember that. well, now as a great-grandfather he has advice for president obama on politics. but he's shy on parenting. any advice for the obamas for sasha and malia? >> no, not really. i think they've handled their daughters very well. >> okay. a little shy there on advice for the obamas. well, in the meantime, white

house could announce its decision to release photos of bin laden's body, which brings us to the question of carol costello. a lot of people talking about this today. >> we got a lot of responses to this question. should the united states release the bin laden death photos. this from sarah. i don't believe so. that's just another reason for the extremists to call us ugly americans. he's dead. i personally don't believe we should be dancing on his grave. honestly, i want to see it, but it may make it worse on our soldiers overseas. my husband is serving in operation enduring freedom and it makes me very worried for him. yes, we have a right to see them. for those who don't want to see them, don't look. it may be a part of the healing process for many. we should see it all, the death video, the burial, the pictures, everything. we've been in this from the start. i'm sure repercussions are planned regardless of if these are shown. absolutely, more so now because the story has changed day to day on what happened. and it just makes you wonder.

this from kate. even in death he is commanding the attention of the world. good riddance to bad rubbish. facebook.com/carol cnn, and i'll be back with you in about 15 minutes. >> all right. thanks, carol. >> sure. if you're looking for a job, there is a glimmer, a glimmer of hope. we're seeing signs of slow improvement. employers added 179,000 positions in april. a number of planned job cuts fell. but the unemployment rate remains high at 8.8%. so college grads, listen up. some tips on how to start your career on the right foot. >> hi, suzanne. employers report they'll hire 19% new college grads this year than last year. salaries are going to be starting around $50,000 on average. which is all good news. it's according to the national association of colleges and employers. so now first, if you're looking to land that post-grad gig, get ready to network.

an employer can look you up on your social media sites. so get rid of any photos of you on facebook or twitter that may show you in an unflattering light. make sure that your e-mail address and voicemail greeting is professional and appropriate, and respond to all inquiries as soon as possible. stay in touch with your school's career center as well as alumni office. now, listen, employers take 30 seconds or less to review a resume. so highlight your accomplishments and work in and out of the classroom. especially if you're light on professional experience. hiring managers are going to want to see that you've been active. list your internships, part-time jobs, volunteer and classwork, involvement in clubs and sports. because according to career builder, these are all things that employers say they count as relevant experience. also check in with your former intern manager as well. internship very important. recent surveys showed employers recruited more than half of their interns for full-time positions last year. that could be an easier way to

get your foot in the door. finally, first impressions, very important. they count. when it comes to that interview, some of the biggest mistakes college grads make is not turning off your cell phone, dressing inappropriately and acting entitled. don't forget to send that thank you. more than 1 in 100 managers said they're less likely to hire someone if they don't send a thank you note. little things make a very big difference. >> thank you, carmen. more after the break with my exclusive interview with former president jimmy carter.

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we know diamonds. together we'll make this mother's day one she'll never forget. that's why only zales is the diamond store. the u.s. government says that bin laden was buried in accordance with islamic traditions. some fundamentalists say that's not true. this was the scene in central pakistan today where a group held funeral prayers for bin laden. so what are the islamic traditions when it comes to burial and why the discrepancy? we're going to go in-depth with carl. give us a sense why was the united states government in such a rush to bury bin laden at sea? >> well, for one thing, suzanne, the u.s. government, the u.s. military were trying to walk a fine line with this. on the one hand they wanted to give a proper and somewhat respectful burial, even to a mortal enemy like bin laden.

but on the other hand they didn't want to bury him in a place where there would be security concerns. a few factors came into play here. one of those factors is that there were no nations according to the united states that were willing or able to accept bin laden's body. so you have that. there are concerns, part of the reason for that, concerns about security at the grave. would it become a rallying point for bin laden's supporters. would someone try to exhume the body, who actually wanted to see the body. another thing that came into play was that delay in burial would have violated an islamic rule that says a body should be buried as soon as possible after it is deceased. so by transferring the body to another country, maybe planning a burial, that might have violated that rule. >> carl, what does islamic say about this kind of burial? >> as far as burials at sea go, only in rare circumstances. there are principles in islamic law surrounding burial. one of those is that the grave

should be deep enough to protect the body that could be protection from animals, it could be protection from an enemy of the deceased. the body should be laid on its right side facing toward mecca, the muslim spiritual center located in saudi arabia. as far as burial at sea goes, only in very rare circumstances is this permitted according to muslim scholars. if someone is making a pilgrimage to the haj, the person dies onboard a boat at sea, it might be acceptable. another case when it might be acceptable, according to some scholars, is if there's an enemy that might exhume or desecrate the body. all of those security concerns came into play here. >> carl, thank you very much. >> thank you. >> appreciate it. top of the hour. i want to get you up to speed. the public waits to see if the white house will release photographs of bin laden's body inside his home in pakistan. cia director leon panetta says

he thinks a picture should and will be made public. some u.s. officials are concerned that the grisly images could incite extremists. others say the pictures will prove to skeptics that bin laden is dead. president obama will meet with 9/11 families at ground zero, that's happening in new york tomorrow. but his predecessor is not going to be there. george w. bush's spokesman said the former president declined obama's invitation, preferring to stay out of the spotlight. security has been beefed up at important locations around the country, after the killing of bin laden. our cnn homeland security correspondent jeanne meserve has the latest from washington. i understand you are actually getting new information from the attorney general, eric holder. >> from the attorney general, and also secretary napolitano, both of them still appearing on the hill at this hour. napolitano says that her

department is already getting intelligence that has been gathered from the materials, the computers, hard drives and storage devices that were seized during the raid on osama bin laden. already getting that information, she says. and the attorney general, eric holder, was asked what his department is going to do about the people whose names are found in that material. here's a bit of what he had to say. >> the material that was seized from that residence is being reviewed by interagency team, cia, justice, other intelligence agencies, other law enforcement agencies are all contributing people and machines to go through that material. as we glean information from that material, we will make appropriate decisions with regard to who might be added to the terrorist watch list, the no-fly list, all those things. >> you expect you probably will add people as a result of -- >> my guess is we probably will. >> holder said that he held a conference call with u.s. attorneys earlier in the week to fill them in on the possibility of retaliatory attacks.

napolitano said security resources were searched at airports and sea ports, and land borders. she also said that information was pushed out to local law enforcement and owners of critical infrastructure. so they could take additional protective measures if they chose to do so. but she said at this point in time, there is still not the sort of specific threat information that would warrant issuing an advisory under the newly revised threat warning system. suzanne, back to you. >> all right. thank you, jeanne. here's your chance to talk ck on one of the big stories of the day. should the united states release the bin laden photos? well, our carol costello joins us for this. it's a very controversial topic. a lot of people with strong opinions. there's nobody who seems to be wavering on this. >> the photos are described as quite gruesome. the shot to osama bin laden's face apparently blew off a piece of his skull. if they have the dna that it

really is bin laden, why do we need to see these grisly photos of his corpse. even lawmakers are split on the issue. >> i just don't see a need to do it. the dna has been dispositive. >> unless al qaeda acknowledged that bin laden was there, it was important for the united states to release the picture of his body to confirm that he is dead. >> as if to prove that point, the taliban says they don't believe it. the administration is worried that releasing these graphic photos will spark violent acts of revenge. 56% of americans want them released, according to a cnn opinion research corporation poll. the 9/11 victims say they should submit photos. it's something we should be able to see. most people believe bin laden's dead. why is it so important to see the death photos?

here's one big reason. osama bin laden remains a heroic defined figure to many in the islamic world. and cnn terror analyst bergen said it would puncture his heroic glow among his followers. so should the u.s. release the bin laden death photos? facebook.com/carolcnn. >> i thought it was interesting, nic robertson said they're debating in pakistan whether or not they're going to blow up the bin laden compound. for similar reasons, whether or not people will come and gather at this place and consider bin laden a martyr. should they blow up the whole thing. >> they've had hundreds of tourists going by. it's the talk of the neighborhood. it's already a place of interest, at the very least. >> carol, thanks. i can't wait for the responses. i spoke with former president jimmy carter on this very issue about whether or not this is going to have a big impact on the war on terror.

here's how he responded. osama bin laden is dead. >> yes. >> what is the significance? >> i think it's quite significant. i wouldn't say that the threat of terrorism is eliminated, but i think it is substantially reduced. >> do you think president obama having brought osama bin laden to justice will serve another term? >> i hope so. it's too early to predict. i think it's certainly enhanced his political standing, his reputation among people, particularly those that didn't think he was a strong, competent person to carry out a mission successfully. >> is the war on terror is over? is it time to get out of afghanistan? >> i would hope that this could expedite our exit from afghanistan. but certainly the war is not over. >> more on my exclusive interview with jimmy carter. it really was a pleasant interview, great experience. i spent about an hour with him eight his plains, georgia, office. >>successful.

>> he said he wrote the op-ed for the "washington post," called world leaders, he's writing a book on sunday school classes that he's teaching, and he bagged a turkey. >> he bagged a turkey? >> he killed a turkey. >> good for him. >> all in a day's work. 86. >> that's awesome. thanks, carol. well, she should have turned around, but a 93-year-old woman tried to drive across a flooded highway in southeastern missouri. national guard troops pulled her from the water. they say she is fine. farmers in southeastern missouri are sharp live criticizing the army corps of engineers for flooding their land. engineers blew up a levee to

lower water levels on the mississippi and ohio rivers. well, it saved the town of cairo, illinois, but it ruined 200 square miles of farmland for the planting season. the united way of central alabama and birmingham tv station, that is wtvm, are hosting a telethon for tornado victims today. you can direct your donation to any state affected by the tornado outbreak that happened one week ago. now, here are three ways you can donate. first, you can text tornado to 50555, to make a $10 donation, or you can go online to uwca.org, or call the toll-free number, that is 855-205help to make a donation. very good cause. here's a look at what's ahead this hour on the rundown. first, taking down bin laden. how navy s.e.a.l.s actually train. and the cost of killing bin laden. it goes way beyond the raid.

and then finding bin laden, tracing the intelligence route. the white house photo that has gone viral because of its presidential death stare. >> he looks like he's got the weight of the world on his soldier. >> this picture will go down in history. it's amazing. and finally, an intentional flood zone. we're live in missouri where farmers are now really angry. okay guys, what sounds good for dinner tonight?

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we may never know their names or even their faces,

members of the elite navy s.e.a.l. team that killed osama bin laden by a code of silence. but their raid on bin laden's compound in pakistan is going to go down this history. chris lawrence takes us inside this operation, and the training that it takes to become a navy s.e.a.l. >> reporter: the team that killed osama bin laden had gone through thousands of scenarios for assaulting a compound. just like this group of navy s.e.a.l.s on u.s. soil. but the team that went after bin laden was special. part of the naval special warfare development group, or devgroup. >> this is the all-star of the s.e.a.l. teams. >> reporter: stu smith is a former s.e.a.l. who says the men in that raid have at least five years as special operators. >> this s.e.a.l. team is based on combat experience, and all these guys probably have 100, 200 missions. >> reporter: the cia provided

detailed satellite pictures of plaud's compound, enough to build a replica. a senior defense official said for a time they trained for a time not knowing who their actual target was. but by sunday they knew every gate and window in that compound, the exact height of the walls. >> they operated according to that. they didn't know when they got there exactly what some of the internal features of it would be. >> reporter: the defense official says by the time the s.e.a.l.s ran out of the house with bin laden's body, they could probably count the exact number of steps to the helicopter outside. special operator training is brutal. >> [ bleep ]. >> reporter: at least six months of sheer hell. >> let's go, jonathan. >> reporter: but the men that took down bin laden don't necessarily look like linebackers. >> they have a great deal of muscle. just not everybody's massive. you know, you don't have to be, you know, 6'5", 250 pounds to be a s.e.a.l.

>> reporter: two teams were supposed to fast-rope down from the blackhawks, but one helicopter had mechanical problems and had to land hard. but one team directly on the ground. there was a contingency plan and the s.e.a.l.s scrambled out to continue their mission. >> there's a reason why they brought two helicopters. in the s.e.a.l. teams we say two is one, one is none. they knew what to do, even in the event of a downed helicopter. >> reporter: an official told me that the white house let the actual selection of the team up to the military. the question they asked themselves was, how much force do we need. he says, the special s.e.a.l. team was selected becae it best fit the mission. not because it's necessarily better than, say, delta force. he says a 12-man green beret alpha team might have been too small to assault a compound this size. whereas he knew they didn't need an entire battalion of army rangers. the special s.e.a.l. team was

the best combination of size and capability. chris lawrence, cnn, the pentagon. >> one former navy s.e.a.l. says the unspoken code is to be a quiet professional. but he is providing us with some insight into the mission to capture and kill osama bin laden. chris spent ten years as a navy s.e.a.l. he's currently vice president of a company that provides products and training for police, fire departments and other first responders and he joins us from cleveland. first of all, thanks for being here. give us a sense of how the s.e.a.l. team prepared for this mission. >> thanks for having me, suzanne. the s.e.a.l.s had an exact replica of this compound that was built just off of the base at bagram in afghanistan. they trained on this site hundreds and hundreds of times. they knew the height of every wall, the thickness of every wall, the distance from one wall to the next. they knew every intimate detail in that compound just like you or i would know every detail in

our own kitchen or our own bathroom. it was very methodic, very rehearsed, very calculated. >> do you know any of the s.e.a.l.s who took part in the operation? have you spoken to anybody? >> i have not spoken to any of them yet. i do know a few of them. that's all i want to comment on that. >> do you know who fired the shot that killed bin laden? will we ever know, or is that something that's really super secret? >> that is information that i pray to god is never released. i do know some of the gentlemen that took the shots on the somali pirates last year. the information will probably filter down to me very shortly. i pray that information never gets released. that person would be in immediate jeopardy as would his family. perhaps for generations to come. >> and you bring that up. it's a very good point. because i know the s.e.a.l.s' code is to be a quiet professional. how important is that code of silence in a mission like this? that it be kept for secret for such a long time.

>> that is essential to almost every operation that these guys do, whether it's delta force or devgru. the proverbial saying, loose lips sink ships, that's very true. we kept this intelligence information in-house. we didn't share it with other nato organizations. we were concerned that much with having anything leak. >> is it the kind of thing, chris, where you can't even tell, like your spouse? >> definitely. if a guy's about to do any operation, especially one of this magnitude, you'll call home, you'll speak with your wife, or your kids and just say, hello, honey, how's it going. hope you had a great day. we'll chat again soon. i love you. let me talk to little bobby. that's pretty much how the call will go. i'm about to do something dangerous. i may not come home. those words are never spoken. the conversations are always, always upbeat. keeping it real. >> were you surprised no s.e.a.l.s were killed in this operation? the level of danger that we actually saw?

>> not surprised. as s.e.a.l.s, as delta force guys, we are afforded with the utmost in technology. these guys had high technology body armor on. they had ballistic helmets which probably had pads inside, a cleveland company that make the best helmet padding in the country. i'm not surprised. these guys probably took some rounds somewhere. but because of this protective equipment, they were able to come home safely. i can imagine those guys in the helicopter, that had a hard landing and rolled, i would bet you dimes to dollars that quite a few of those guys had some significant orthopedic injuries, whether it was a fractured ankle, a broken hand or wrist or elbow. but true to form, as s.e.a.l.s are, we're thoroughbreds, just jump out of the helicopter. >> keeping it real, as you say. thank you, chris. it took a decade to find osama bin laden. do you ever wonder how much that actually cost?

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getting amazing pictures, live pictures now from flooding that's taking place in memphis, tennessee. we bring in our own chad myers to explain what's taking place there. it's nothing to do with levees breaking or anything like that? >> nothing to do with the blast. that's well upstream from memphis. that high water still has to come to memphis. what you see here is only the

beginning of the flooding. we were a little bit ago right over the state park. a lot of the nice pretty glass along mud island completely covered. this is going to go up another four, maybe five feet. we could see some of these roadways inundated. there's the pyramid. what you see in the foreground, mud island. as you get underneath the bridge, that's the bridge that looks like an m for memphis. it's a couple double-decker bridge, or double-hoop bridge. you see the trees are underwater. this water level has a long way to go before the flooding is finally over. we have many, many more feet to add to this flood. and there will be people along those rivers all the way up and down from where we're talking about cairo, where rob marciano is, that water has to get to the gulf of mexico. the high water mark has a long way to travel before that bubble of water finally gets to the gulf of mexico. >> when we look at these pictures, is there any way to know how high the water has

risen? it certainly looks like it's gotten up to the trees. i don't know if it's the tops of the trees. >> there's no way to know where we are at this point in time on this river. i have my producer in the weather office, monica, could you please put up the graphic that shows memphis river levels, please. there's been so much rain in this area. 10 to 12 inches of rainfall just in the past two weeks. then you add on the fact that all this snow has melted to the north. because we're still -- and nor a while when the rain was happening, the rain wasn't soaking in because the ground was still frozen. now where are we now? we're one month from hurricane season. can you imagine, even a tropical storm, running up the gulf of mexico into this mississippi river valley, how much more flooding could possibly occur? here's the river level right there. and the difference between pink and orange, major stage. major flood stage. we're still above where we have to go to get to record. but that line is still on the

uptrend. the more it rains, the more it will. the green little dots that you see to the right, that's the forecast where it's still going. >> that's the forecast. >> so in the next five days, we're up another three feet. and it's still going up from there. this isn't done. this still has -- >> it's only -- >> there will only be a slight dip when we see where that water now, because of the blast near cairo, that blast will just release a little bit of the high water bubble. and we will see a slight dip there. even in fem miss, because of the water inundating these farms. i know the farmers are upset, and i lived along the mississippi and missouri river for a lot of my life. it's not so much that the ground is going to get wet, it will, of course. but it will get silted. there's junk in this water. there's silt in this water that will make the land not as fertile as it was. now, that said, all of this land that we're talking about is a floodplain. it has been a floodplain for hundreds of thousands of years. that's how the ground got so

fertile in the first place. >> they expected this? >> well, i heard rob talk to a man who went through the '37 or '39 flood, he said, sometimes it just happens. what we have done, we have put people in the way. we have put houses in the way. we have put communities in the way that weren't there in 1939 and '37. that's what's getting flooded this time. >> chad, appreciate that. >> sure. look at business headlines. cnn money.com's lead story, how gas prices are impacting the average family. a check of the markets, the dow is now down about 120 points or so. in the decade between the september 11th attacks and sunday's killing of osama bin laden, defense spending now has soared. from new agencies, expanding new missions, to thousands more of intelligence analysts, all of those things. and alison kosak has been totaling up all of this. i can't imagine that's an easy thing to do. she joins us from the new york stock exchange. how much do we know has been

spent to protect our country? >> the good old calculator, suzanne, says that hundreds of billions of dollars has been spent on fighting terrorism over the past decade. but you know what, catching the number-one terrorist comes at a cost. but how much of a cost? the funding surge that started, it started immediately after 9/11. that's when the department of homeland security was created. the budget last year was sitting at $45 billion. that's big money. that's more money than the gdp of iraq, cuba and 130 other countries combined. we're talking about a lot of money, suzanne. >> wow. those figures don't even count the pentagon's budget. how does that weigh in? how does that factor into all of these figures? >> you said it. because the pentagon actually dwarfs the dhs in budget and size. think about it, the pentagon handles a lot more military overseas operations. before 9/11 the pentagon's budget was sitting at $300 billion. we actually stayed at that level for 15 years. then boom, 9/11 hit, and that

spending seriously surged. the budget last year was at $700 billion. you have to remember, a lot of that went to fighting the wars in iraq and afghanistan. >> alison, i've got to ask you here. obviously we're all happy that bin laden's been captured. we see the big results, that the money has paid off. but can this spending go on with the budget crisis that we're dealing with, at those levels? >> you know, with our debt issues, front and center these days, i'll tell you what, everything is on the table right now when it comes to the budget cuts. president obama is proposing cuts in defense spending. it can really be a tough sell, because no one wants to be soft on terrorism since 9/11, but we're in extraordinary times where we can cut the deficit at this point. analysts say they're seeing reckless growth in the defense budget, because in the past what you saw was congress pretty much rubber stamping defense spending. but that could change as our debt problems really get closer and closer.

so we'll really have to see where these cuts come from, suzanne. >> alison, appreciate it. thanks. he hasn't run for office for nearly three decades, over three decades, but jimmy carter always keeps politics on his radar. in my exclusive interview, carter weighs in on the next generation. will we see another carter in the white house? >> well, you know -- >> more of my exclusive interview in the "cnn newsroom." her morning begins with artitis pain.

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a rundown on the stories we are working on. more of my exclusive interview with former president jimmy carter. hear what he has to say about president obama and racism. plus, angry farmers in missouri are speaking out after their farms were flooded by an intentional levee breach. later, the famous photograph of president obama and his top aides during the raid that killed osama bin laden. we're going to take you behind that picture. years ago he laid out a plan for middle east peace, bringing all sides to the negotiating table. including a group considered to be terrorists by the obama and bush administrations. that group is hamas. today in cairo, hamas is at the bargaining table once again, to unite palestinians. former president carter wrote an op-ed today in the "washington post," and i pressed him on whether he is promoting a terrorist organization.

>> they obviously don't admit that they conducted terrorism. because a lot more palestinians killed in the altercations than other people. so, no, they don't acknowledge that they are terrorists, of course. >> do you believe they are? >> they commit some terrible acts of violence against civilians, and so do other people involved in those altercations in the middle east. >> he is also weighing in on racism. and whether or not president obama is a target. what do you make of the birther movement? do you think that there is a racial motivation behind people questioning the president and whether or not he is actually a citizen of this country? >> i think that's one of the motivations, yes. i still believe that racial issue is one of the factors. not the only factor, in people accusing president obama of not being a citizen of america. to de-legitimize his

administration and actual election, yes. >> there were some people who believed it was beneath him and the office to produce this long-form birth certificate. do you agree, do you think that was the right thing to do? >> i know it was a difficult call for him. and his closest advisers were divided on the issue. but i really think it was the right thing to do to clear the air once and for all. whether or not he had to have a big press conference, that was an additional factor someone might question. he made the right decision. i think it's better for people like me certainly who have served in the white house not to be critical of actions of people there, faced with all the different arguments back and forth. and then they make the final decision the best they can. sometimes we have, and they do, make mistakes. >> tomorrow we'll have more from president jimmy carter, raw and uncut. you'll hear his views on church, feminism and his favorite pasttimes, including turkey

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one week after a massive tornado outbreak, parts of the south are shifting their focus

now from rescue to recovery. alabama, as you know, was hit the hardest. the state's governor is promising quick action to clean up and rebuild. more than 20 large tornadoes touched down in alabama, killing at least 250 people. the decision to blow up a levee along the mississippi river has eased the flooding crisis around cairo, illinois. water levels have now started to drop. but tens of thousands of acres of missouri farmland are now underwater. a lot of farmers are upset. rob marciano is in mississippi county, missouri. >> reporter: day two of the exploding levee extravaganza. extreme measures taken for really an extreme flood event. we haven't seen this level on the river here in mississippi and along the ohio since 1937. and yesterday they blew up a second levee. take a look at this video. soil and earth being blown above the treetops. that is at the opposite end of

this floodway. so that some of this water can begin to drain. this is farmland. this is now not so good farmland. at least for this year. that has a lot of farmers upset. class-action lawsuits happening. the state of missouri not happy at all about this solution that they've had. we tracked down a retired farmer, who was here during the 1930s flood, and here's what he had to to say about the situation. >> they've just been lucky that the few years they haven't had a flood. this is one of the things that happens once in a great while. you just have to take it on the chin. >> reporter: needless to say, it's not just farmers who are affected. there are hundreds, if not thousands of homes that will bed flooded in this situation. there are several towns that are completely evacuated. we went out yesterday with the u.s. wildlife service and we toured a couple of spots. in olive branch, the roadway flooding over it.

the water's going to remain steady here. even though they've released some of the pressure, now they're releasing more water upstream that's been held there in dams with all the rain that we've seen the last couple of weeks. this will affect people here for another week or so. and downstream, through memphis, and mississippi, eventually louisiana for the next couple of weeks. suzanne? >> thanks, rob. missouri governor jay nixon has gotten a firsthand look at the flooding in his state. he said the key focus now is recovery. >> i try to bring people together. the tougher the times, the more they stand together. they're talking about another explosion lower today to get that area cleared out. so the water can move through there more freely. the bottom line is, we've got to get beyond what has happened and get to the point of what we can do to help those families in those areas. we want to rebuild. we want to recover.

we want to replenish. >> governor nixon said floodwaters now cover 130,000 acres in missouri. connecting the dots on osama bin laden. a look at how the threads of intelligence came together to finally track him down.

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the compound where osama bin laden was killed is already becoming something of a tourist attraction. our cnn senior international correspondent nic robertson gives us an up-close look inside and outside of bin laden's final hideout. >> reporter: there's already a big crowd of people gathering around there. i can see some soldiers, one soldier walking in across the field. but when you look at this building, look at it there. it's different from all the other buildings around it. it's taller, and it's got a higher wall. the compound starts right here. you can see how high the wall is. look at this. okay. i'm 6 foot. my arm's maybe another two feet. it gives you an idea how tall the wall is. there's razor wire at the top of it as well. if you come back, over here, come and stand up over here, we can take a look here. you'll get to see the high part of the compound building here. it was up there on the second

and third floor where bin laden was killed. two shots, one to the head, one to the chest. what's becoming already a tourist attraction in and of itself. look at all the people who are gathered here right now. people have their cell phones out, taking pictures. you can see the doors are sealed. these pink labels here. and here. they're sealing the doors to the compound. behind the doors, blood on the floor. this video was taken just after the fight finished. now all that damage is off-limits. as you walk around the compound, there's nothing to give away that the world's most wanted terrorist was living inside here. but this is incredibly ironic. painted on the outside, an advert for a girl's college on the wall of the compound where the world's most wanted terrorist lived. but think about it, more than that, this man, osama bin laden,

denied women access to eds indication. his view of islam denied women the opportunity to progress in life. and here it is, on the outside of the place where he was hiding, an advert for girls to get an education. >> u.s. intelligence community came under fire after the september 11th attacks for not getting osama bin laden. but they were weaving together threads of information. our pentagon correspondent barbara starr looks at how it all came together this time. >> reporter: it would be a leap of faith by navy s.e.a.l.s, the cia, and president obama that osama bin laden really was hiding at this million-dollar compound in pakistan. >> there was no one single piece of information that was an aha moment. >> reporter: the final trail to getting bin laden really started in 2003, when the cia focused heavily on bin laden's use of couriers to communicate.

>> he's not communicating electronically. so he's got to meet face to face. that's much more difficult for us to track, but it's an opportunity. and they began at that point. >> reporter: a u.s. official provided cnn with many details of the hunt. by 2005, they were looking for one man in particular, a courier who is a protege of khalid shaikh mohammed, and a top bin laden operative. both men are under cia interrogation. ksm refuses to talk about the courier. it's a clue how important he may be. in one government report posted by wikileaks, it says the courier may have accompanied him to tora bora. >> our ability to monitor the courier turned out to be the critical piece of information. >> reporter: in 2007, the cia learns the man's name.

abu ahmed al kuwaiti, from one one official calls classic espionage. they say pakistanis provide some information. by 2009 the cia knows the general area in pakistan where the courier is living. once they even spot him on the street. in august 2010, they learn the courier and his brother are living at this compound. but something isn't right. why do they need 18-foot-tall walls, security gates and a $1 million mansion. by late 2010, the u.s. is covertly watching the compound around the clock. telephone conversations of the courier are intercepted. the courier and his brother are practicing extraordinary operational security, the official tells cnn, they don't use their real name in the town. they burn their trash. again, why? who are they protecting? the u.s. comes to realize there's a third family there,

and the family matches the makeup of osama bin laden's family. one of his wives, a son and three children. but no sign of bin laden. in september the cia briefs president obama for the first time in-depth. they tell the president they have found a really interesting compound, and a courier with ties to osama bin laden. just before president obama authorized the assault, the cia conducted one last analysis. a so-called red team analysis, to see if there was any other explanation that it was osama bin laden at the compound. cia director leon panetta was told, nope, it still looks like it's him. we have no proof, but we think it's him. the president authorized the mission. but nobody was certain until they got to the compound and saw bin laden there. barbara starr, cnn, the pentagon. >> from a childhood of wealth, to a u.s. ally against the soviets, to 9/11 mastermind, how

osama bin laden became the world's most wanted man. this friday, cnn takes an in-depth look at one of the most hunted terrorists of all time. join anderson cooper for the cnn award-winning documentary "in the footsteps of bin laden." friday night at 11:00 eastern on cnn. well, it happened for the bush family. >> could we see another carter in the white house? >> well, you know -- >> i'll tell you more of my exclusive sit-down with former president carter and reveal the budding politician on the carter family tree. down the hill? man: all right. we were actually thinking, maybe... we're going to hike up here, so we'll catch up with you guys. [ indistinct talking and laughter ] whew! i think it's worth it. working with a partner you can trust is always a good decision.

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former president carter's grandson jason carter just got elected to georgia's state senate for a suburban atlanta seat in a special election. we'll see how he does. he's a 34-year-old lawyer who captured 65% of the vote. that's awesome. at any time the white house could announce its decision to release photos of osama bin laden's body, which brings us to the top of our question. carol, folks must be really weighing in on this one. >> lots of responses to this

talkback question, should the u.s. release the bin laden death photos. yes, this is what we have busted our butts for for nearly ten years. show the pics. the american people are faced with those images of 9/11 forever. bin laden's death photo is necessary to put to bed any doubt. this from mack. if the government shows the picture footage of osama, it will only show how the country can become as bloody and sickening as the terrorists we seek to stop. why should they show the images of bin laden dead, so the conspiracy theorists can say they were photo shopped? as always, thank you for your insight. >> carol, it's interesting, because nic robertson was reporting that the compound where bin laden was actually captured and killed has now become a tourist attraction. they're considering whether or not they should blow up the

whole thing so people don't congregate and consider him to be a martyr. >> and continue to remind everyone within pakistan, how embarrassing this is for the pakistani government. maybe that's another reason why the government wants to blow it up. >> i wouldn't doubt that. thank you, carol. >> sure. >> appreciate it. well, if looks could kill, the stare-down from president obama, that's right, we're talking about his intense expression during the navy s.e.a.l. raid to take down bin laden. 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.

late-night comedians are showing no mercy. the bin laden jokes just keep coming. >> it's been reported that osama bin laden was killed by -- have you heard this -- by an elite squad of navy s.e.a.l.s called team six. these guys are amazing. not only did they kill bin laden, they also killed donald trump shock at being president. >> a photograph releaseded by the white house of the obama team watching the raid that killed bin laden is already famous. and not just for its historic significance. jeanne moos takes us behind the picture. >> reporter: bet you've never seen president obama look like this. >> he looks like he's got the weight of the world on his

shoulders. >> reporter: or hillary clinton look like this. >> her facial expression is so intense and so scared and so concerned. >> reporter: by now, you've probably seen this photo, and so will future generations. >> this picture will go down in history. it's amazing. >> serious and profound moment. >> reporter: well, not for everyone. it's already being photo shopped with hats from the royal wedding, with president obama holding a video game controller. some refer to the president's look as the death stare. as in, if looks could kill. and osama bin laden is dead. the photo was taken in the situation room. >> you're in "the situation room." . >> reporter: no, not that situation room. though the president haes taken note of wolf blitzer. >> the only man with his own situation room. >> reporter: they have bells and whistles that even wolf doesn't have. >> we can fog the windows to

give him that level of privacy. we call them superman tubes. >> reporter: for top-secret or unclassified calls. it was simplicity rather than gadgetsry in this photo that captured the public's imagination. there were realtime updates on the raid that killed osama bin laden. >> they all seem very vulnerable. >> reporter: especially with hillary with her hand to her mouth. >> you want to hold your mouth -- you know, it's unspeakable. >> reporter: on the web, the photo's being blown up and dissected from the words on hillary's binder to the intentionally blurred, apparently classified document on the table, to the burn bag used to burn papers too secret to merely shred. reporters asked that the white house wouldn't say exactly what everyone was staring at. the moment the photo was snapped. so the guessing game began, what was obama watching? "sex and the city" reruns?

we imagine it was something like the scene in patriot games, a military raid, targets neutralized. what seems written all over these faces is a phrase made famous by the bush administration -- >> the shock and awe. >> reporter: jeanne moos, cnn. >> a different shock and awe. "cnn newsroom" continues right now with randi kay. new details emerging about the dramatic killing of osama bin laden. according to a senior pakistani intelligence source, one of bin laden's daughters says she saw him being shot and killed by u.s. forces. the daughter was one of eight or nine children left behind in the compound after the raid. among two or three women being questioned is one who's believed to be bin laden's wife. as for those who died, pakistani intel sources say in